


H2O: Atlantis

by MissLuxe



Category: H2O: Just Add Water
Genre: Atlantis, Expanding on H2O lore, F/F, F/M, M/M, Mermaids, Mermen, Revised Season 3
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 06:17:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 26,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17259110
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissLuxe/pseuds/MissLuxe
Summary: What would happen if the girls explored Mako a little bit more? Mermen? Maybe. A lost civilization? Possibly. A tail-full of trouble? Definitely. Reimagined Season 3, inspired by 'Creating Atlantis' by TempDuLoupe on Ffnet.





	1. Moon-Stuck

            For the first time since they’d become mermaids, life was practically perfect for Emma Gilbert, Rikki Chadwick, and Cleo Sertori. Charlotte, humiliated and human, had transferred to a boarding school across the country.  The full moon hadn’t affected them for months.  And they had loving boyfriends with whom they could share their secret.

            The boyfriends in question were currently waiting for them at their secluded spot on the beach.  The girls popped their heads out of the water and the boys splashed over, eager to help them out of the surf and back into their legs.

            “Nice swim?”  Zane Bennett asked as he offered Rikki a hand.  She took it without hesitation.

            “Very.  Cleo found a new reef.”

            “And the dolphins from the other day found us again!”  The brunette in question piped up.

            At the mention of the dolphins, the trio launched into a steady stream of excited chatter that remained unbroken until they’d dried off and began to make their way to the along the sand.

            “-and the dolphins were so playful, especially when we saw the sea turtles-”

            “-which were huge!  They were pretty close to the reef, right at Mako-”

            “-and we totally might’ve been worried about sharks, since we’re still getting the hang of our powers-”

            “-or worse, getting spotted by someone-”

            “-but they didn’t want to come anywhere near the dolphins-”

            “-and we figured if we stuck close and stayed underwater, we could pass ourselves off as dolphins to anyone above-”

            “-not that anyone really goes out there these days.  Which is why we were thinking-”

            “-we should have a picnic-”

            “-or go camping out there-”

            “-so we can really explore the island-”

            “-and get some quality time alone.”

            Lewis McCartney, Ash Dove, and Zane Bennett waited a moment to see if they were finally finished.  When they received nothing but expectant stares, Lewis cleared his throat.

            “That sounds like a great idea! Maybe we can plan it tonight at the JuiceNet?”

            Rikki made a face.  “Why would we be at the JuiceNet at night?  It’s closed.”

            “It’s the full moon, and he keeps going on about us getting moonstruck,” Cleo sighed, before he could answer. “Even though we weren’t affected at all last time.”

            “Lewis, I think we’re past the point of needing babysitting during the moon. Besides, Rikki’s right; the cafe is closed.”  Said Emma.

            Ash slipped an arm around his girlfriend’s waist.  “Actually, I have the keys.  And, I think Lewis has a point; we need to make sure that you really can’t get moonstruck anymore, and none of us wants to leave you alone until we know.”

            “‘Us’?”  Rikki questioned before turning to Zane.  “So you three have already made this decision, have you?”

            “Rikki, please.  You know I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you.  Just humor us, and we’ll drop it as soon as we see there’s nothing to worry about.”

            She searched his eyes for a moment before turning away, but she didn’t drop his hand.  “Fine. I’m in if the rest of you are.”

 

* * *

  

            “It’s a school night, Cleo.”

            “Dad, I finished all my schoolwork, and it’s just Rikki and Emma,”  Cleo huffed.  “I don’t see what the big deal is!”

            “Sweetheart, you know you’ll end up staying up way too late and you won’t be able to focus at school.  I’m not trying to punish you, and you can certainly have your sleepover tomorrow night instead.”

            “But we can’t tomorrow!  Come on Dad, please?  The Gilberts will make sure we get plenty of sleep.”

            Kim poked her head in.

            “Oh, please.  Cleo just wants to see her boyfriend; she’s always sneaking off to see him anyway.”

            Cleo whirled on her sister.

            “Kim!”  But she had already fled, so Cleo turned back to her father.  “Dad-”

            “I don’t want to hear it, Cleo.  You’re spending the night in your room, without a boy in sight!”

            Cleo was going to kill her sister.

 

* * *

 

            Cleo winced as her door closed with a quiet click.  She stilled, ears straining for any hint that her father or sister was awake to hear her.  Nobody stirred, and she released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Sure, she wasn’t worried that missing the sleepover would make her vulnerable to the full moon, but Cleo hated feeling left out.  Plus she hadn’t Lewis or the others not to expect her, and she didn’t want them to worry that she’d been moonstruck.  That would only fuel their boyfriends’ paranoia.  Sometimes Cleo wished that Lewis could truly understand what being a mermaid felt like, but but all she could do was try to explain it to him.

            Cleo crept downstairs, pausing only briefly outside Kim’s door before deciding that revenge would have to wait.  The front door, thankfully, didn’t creak, but Cleo closed it carefully just to be sure.  She was leaving later than she’d hoped, though it couldn’t be helped, and she glanced up to check the location of the moon in the sky.  The sight of it filled Cleo with a sense of calm and eased the tension from her muscles.  She altered her course to take her around the house and down to the water.  She would arrive at the JuiceNet cafe far faster if she swam, she reasoned.

 

* * *

 

            Don Sertori’s heart sank as he heard Cleo’s door open.  He’d been so hopeful that Kim’s comment about sneaking out was just another one of her tall tales, but now he had the evidence in front of him. He watched as his eldest daughter passed under his window.  That was strange; the only destination that that path led to was the backyard, and he could clearly see that there was no one waiting for her there.  But Cleo continued to stroll forward, and for a moment Don thought perhaps she was waiting for a boat.  Then, without warning, Cleo dove into the water, startling Don so much that he nearly upended a nearby glass of water.

            By the time he’d recovered from his shock, Cleo was nowhere in sight and Don was about to turn away when the largest tailfin he’d ever seen broke the surface with a splash.

 

* * *

 

            “She’s still not answering her phone.  Where could she be?”  Emma, normally level-headed and patient, had joined Lewis in his pacing after the ninth missed call.

            “There’s no way she’s been moonstruck, right?”  Rikki asked.  “I mean, it doesn’t affect us anymore.”

            Lewis ran a hand through his hair.

            “You don’t really _know_ that though; you just _think_ it.  This is why I said we needed to watch you three tonight.”

            “I _think_ that I _know_ more about being a mermaid than you do, Lewis.”

            Zane hurried to soothe his girlfriend, shooting Lewis a look of warning.

            “Watch it, Lewis.  You’re just worried.  Don’t take it out on Rikki.”

            “Of course I’m worried,”  Lewis spluttered.  “One peek at the full moon and these three lose it.  Cleo could be in all kinds of trouble right now.”

            “We aren’t children, Lewis,”  Rikki’s face was reddening.  “And we didn’t ask for you to babysit us.”

            “Well maybe you should’ve!”

            “We can take care of ourselves.”

            “Yeah, you’ve been doing _such_ a great job with that, haven’t you?”

            Steam was rising from Rikki’s clenched fists now, and Zane backed away, giving up on trying to calm her.  Lewis had abandoned his pacing.

            “Lewis, I swear-”

            But no one got to hear exactly what it was that Rikki swore, because at that moment there was a howl of wind and the entire cafe shook.  Glasses shattered on the floor, followed closely by all the tables and chairs, which landed with heavy thuds.

            “Is everyone okay?”  Ash asked after the tremors had finally subsided.  Zane and Lewis responded in the affirmative, but when Rikki and Emma remained silent he twisted to find each frozen in a crouch where they’d braced themselves.  Their eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the full moon, which was now visible through a window that had lost its covering.

            Zane scrambled to refasten the tarp.  As the moon vanished from view, the girls blinked and took in the chaos around them.

            “What happened?”  Emma wondered, allowing herself to be pulled to her feet.

            “I’m not sure,”  Lewis responded.  “How do you feel?  You just got an eyeful of the full moon.”

            “I feel fine.”

            “Me too,”  Rikki added. “I told you we wouldn’t get moonstruck.”

            Emma swiftly cut in before they could resume their argument.

            “We should get this cleaned up before someone gets hurt.”  She motioned to the floor, which was littered with food and broken glass.  “Then we can focus on finding Cleo.”

            “Great minds think alike,”  Ash said as he re-emerged from the back room lugging a mop and a bucket full of soapy water. Zane reached out to help but slipped on a piece of fruit as he moved, losing his balance and sending both bucket and mop flying.  The girls shrieked and Emma brought up her hands to freeze the incoming water, but was too late; ten seconds later there were two mermaids sprawled on the dirty floor.

            “Shit, why is there so much glass?”  Emma groaned, trying not to move and risk cutting herself.  Rikki just cursed under her breath as she raised a fist and began to evaporate the water.

            “I’m so sorry!”  Zane had lunged toward them before forcing himself to hang back as his girlfriend worked.

            “Don’t worry about it,”  Emma said dismissively.  “It happens.”

            “What the hell?”  Rikki caught everyone’s attention as she relaxed her hand.  “We’re completely dry; why haven’t we changed?”

            Emma smoothed a hand along her scales.

            “You’re right!  Are we stuck?”

            “Maybe it’s the moon.”  Ash reasoned, and Emma felt her heart start to pound.  Her mouth felt too dry, and she struggled to swallow.

            “Could this be permanent?”

            There was an uneasy silence.  Lewis broke it by slapping a hand to his forehead.

            “Mako!”  He cried. Then, upon noticing their confusion, explained himself.  “If this is happening to you, it probably happened to Cleo too; that’s why she hasn’t been answering her phone.  And if she’s stuck in the water, she probably went to the moon pool at Mako!”

            Emma pushed down her rising panic.

            “You’re right.  And maybe that’s where we’ll find a solution to this.  We can leave this mess for the morning.”  She twisted carefully to look at Ash.  “Do you think you could carry me out to the water?”

            He knelt and gently maneuvered her into his arms, and Zane mirrored him with Rikki.

            “I can definitely manage that,”  He said.

            Though she knew he wouldn’t drop her, being midair without any way to catch herself made Emma feel much too vulnerable, so she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him close.  Rikki giggled as they started off.

            “You look like the cover of a romance novel.”

            “You’re doing the same!”

            “Yeah, well, you did it first.”  She proved to have gotten the last word, as the boys were depositing them at the water’s edge.  Rikki gave Zane a quick kiss before letting go.  “Will you meet us there?”

            “Wouldn’t miss it.  Luckily I parked the boat close tonight.”

            As stressed as the situation made them, the girls couldn’t help but feel relaxed as they slipped into the sea.

 

* * *

 

            They found Cleo floating in the moon pool, examining something shiny in her cupped hands.

            “Oh no,”  She said when she saw them.  “Are you stuck too?”

            “It seems like it,”  Rikki responded.

            “But I thought you were staying away from water?”

            “We were,”  Emma began. “But the earthquake ruined that plan.”

            Cleo flushed.

            “That wasn’t an earthquake.”

            “What do you mean?”

            She fidgeted.

            “Well, I was late because I had to sneak out, so I decided to swim to the JuiceNet but when I got there I couldn’t turn back.  I didn’t know how to get your attention, and I thought maybe using wind to shake the building would get one of the boys to come outside.”

            “Oh, Cleo.  Now all three of us are in the same position!”

            “I know, I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do.”

            Cleo was saved by the entrance of the three boys.  Lewis made a beeline for her.

            “Cleo!  Thank God we found you.  I was so worried!”

            “Don’t celebrate too much,”  Rikki said. “Cleo can’t turn back either; she made the wind outside the cafe to get our attention.”

            “This has to be because of the moon, right?”  Zane asked.  “I mean, that’s the only logical explanation.”

            All six peered up at the round hole overhead.  The full moon was nearly directly above the moon pool, and as they watched, its rays began filling the cavern with pale light.

            “Hey!”  Rikki exclaimed, struggling in the water.  “I can’t move my tail!”

            Cleo and Emma made to help her, but could only twist their torsos and stretch out their arms.

            “Me neither!”

            “It’s like they’re frozen in place!”

            A strong gust sent the boys stumbling toward the water, and Ash had to yank Lewis’s sleeve to keep him from tumbling in.

            “Cleo, stop!”  Emma ordered, voice cracking, but Cleo shook her head.

            “This isn’t me!”  The wind whipped around them, and she had to yell to be heard.

            Again, the wind pushed against the boys’ backs, this time succeeding in forcing Zane into the water.  As he struggled to return to dry land, Emma tried freezing Ash and Lewis’s shoes, but she was too late.  Lewis lost his balance on the lip of the pool and fell forward, dragging Ash in with him. As the full moon aligned itself with the circular opening, its light became radiant and the pool bubbled, glowing golden around them.

            It was only once the water calmed and the air stilled, the chamber once again dim, that the six teens found they could move freely.  The boys quickly exited the water before hoisting their girlfriends out and onto the sand to rest.

            “What just happened?”  Ash broke the silence.

            “I’m not positive,”  Lewis began. “But-”

            “I think we might be mermen,”  Zane cut in, to everyone’s surprise.

            Ash swallowed.

            “You’re joking, right?”

            “I don’t know.  But that seems pretty close to what Rikki described.”

            “I think you’re right,”  Lewis’s voice cracked and he had to clear his throat and repeat himself.  “Jesus, I’ve spent so long studying you three, but I never thought I’d experience it myself.”

            Cleo choked on a sob.

            “Oh my god, this is all my fault,”  She started to shake a little.  “Lewis, I- I kept wishing that you could understand how I felt about being a mermaid.  What if I made that come true?”

            He scooted closer and wrapped his arms around her, and Cleo buried her face in his neck.  But it was Zane, not Lewis, who spoke up.

            “I’m sure it’s not that, Cleo.  When it happened, it was almost like it was the moon pool itself that wanted us.  You girls couldn’t even move.”

            Cleo sniffed and nodded, and Lewis took her cheek in his hand, gently brushing away a tear with his thumb.

            “You’re all acting like this is a done deal,”  Rikki said.  “But we don’t even know if the guys will grow tails yet.  Shit, we don’t even know if _we_ can transform back.”

            “Let’s spend the night here,”  Emma suggested after pondering a moment.  “Rikki’s right, though I can’t believe I’m saying it.  It won’t be comfortable, but I’d rather figure everything out away from prying eyes.  _Especially_ if we’re stuck with tails.”

            The others voiced their agreement, and they settled in.  The girls curled around their boyfriends, who pulled them close, closed their eyes.

            “I can’t stand this,”  Emma whispered so that only Ash could hear.  “I’m not even in control of my own body anymore…”

            He didn’t know how he could make her feel any less vulnerable, so he simply hugged her tighter to him.

            The uncertainty of what lay ahead left everyone full of adrenaline, and they could only pretend to sleep as each finally drifted off.  Ash was the last to lose consciousness, finally succumbing to sleep merely an hour before daybreak.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this fic! I’ll be updating whenever I get the inspiration, so please be sure to review and get my creativity going :)


	2. Power(ful)

            Zane woke first, slowly becoming aware of birdsong, something soft in his arms, and a stiffness in his back that could only come from spending the night on the ground.  The events of the previous night came flooding back and he sat up, earning a muffled groan from Rikki. One of her legs twitched from where they were entangled with his, and she blinked blearily.  He couldn’t help but smooth a strand of wild hair from her face and press a soft kiss to her forehead.

            “Hey,”  Zane whispered.  “You’ve got your legs back.”

            All traces of grogginess left Rikki as she examined her lower half, and her shocked exclamation stirred the other two couples.  Zane’s heart sunk a little; as much as he enjoyed their other friends, he lived for the mornings that they woke up together, alone.

            “What’s going on?”  Lewis tried to say, though it came out as, “Whazzgoinuhn?”

            “Our legs!”  Rikki wiggled her toes with glee.

            Cleo and Emma joined her in celebration, and soon the three were doing a little dance across the sandy floor as the boys watched, bemused.

            “Oh, legs, how I’ve missed you!”  Cleo cried. She halted abruptly, and the other two followed suit.  The atmosphere became tense. “Lewis, I’m sorry, I almost forgot… Should we… Should we all go for a dip?”

            He barked out a nervous laugh and gathered himself.

            “I suppose so.”  The girls entered the water and waited patiently as the boys shuffled to the edge.  Lewis let out another strangled laugh. “We’re going to feel so stupid when nothing happens and we realize we’ve been freaking out over nothing.”

            Zane and Ash gave him jerky nods, not trusting themselves to open their mouths.  It was one thing to be dating mermaids, but the idea of it happening to them was, well, it was beyond them.

            “Together, then?”  Lewis again received only nods.  “Okay, on three. One. Two.” He swallowed.  “Three.”

            They jumped, not giving themselves time to chicken out.  For a few seconds after they submerged, they relaxed; nothing was happening, and all their worry had been for naught.  Then, their whole bodies tingled and the next thing they knew, their legs had been replaced by blue tails. They thrashed underwater until the girls managed to swim them back to the surface.

            “Oh my god,”  Lewis gasped, clutching the ledge.  Cleo rubbed his back soothingly. “We’re fucking _mermen_.”

            “This is insane,”  Ash whispered. “This isn’t happening.”

            Zane just stared into the water, brow furrowed.

            “How do you feel?”  Rikki asked him hesitantly.  She lifted his chin until he met her gaze.

            “Okay, I think,”  He took a deep breath and gave her a hopeful smile.  “I mean, it’s going to be another fifty years until we could even think about undoing this, right?  So there’s not really much point in fighting it. It’s just a little freaky.” What he didn’t tell was that he’d been thinking about how nice it might be to be part of the secret.  Sure, Zane had known the secret and been trusted to guard it, but that was nothing near being involved in it. He could have a whole secret life away from his father. And Rikki would never have to question his trustworthiness again.

            “You know, I think you’re right,”  Ash said. “But I’d feel a whole lot better if I could actually swim with this thing.”  He flicked his tail.

            “Well that part is easy,”  Emma said. “We can teach you right now!”

            “You guys go ahead,”  Cleo said. She was still trying to calm Lewis.  “We might be a bit. Meet back here in an hour?”

            “Sounds good!”

            With that, Cleo and Lewis were alone.

            “I’m sorry,”  He mumbled. “I know it isn’t the worst thing in the world.  I just…”

            “Don’t apologize, I understand,”  Cleo told him. “You’re a scientist, and you’ve spent the past three years trying to figure out mermaids.  But now you’re the one who’s in uncharted territory. It’s enough to make anyone freak.”

            “Not Zane.  Or Ash.”

            “They’re not scientists.  Don’t beat yourself up over it.”  She bit her lip. “Try to think about it as an opportunity; no one else has had the chance to study merpeople, or the ocean itself, so closely.  Not even you.”

            He took a moment to mull it over.

            “I won’t be able to protect you as well as before.”

            Cleo took his hand.

            “We’ll protect each other.”

            Lewis searched her eyes with his own, then pulled her into a deep kiss.  They savored the feel of each other, then, breaking apart, rested for a moment, foreheads pressed together.

            “Okay,”  He breathed.  “Show me your world.”

 

* * *

 

            Zane scowled.  They couldn’t have left the moon pool more than ten minutes ago, but he was no better at using his tail than when they’d started.  Ash had figured it out, and Zane tried to copy his smooth movements, but he just couldn’t get it. One wrong twist of his tail and he shot off in the wrong direction.  He tried to use his swim training, but the movement was all wrong. He knew Rikki had noticed his frustration, and she kept trying to swim beside him to demonstrate, but she was just making him overthink even more.  He sighed, then rolled his eyes and slowly made his way to the surface to replenish his air. Rikki followed soon after.

            “You’re overthinking it,”  She said bluntly. “Just let it come naturally.”

            “Maybe it won’t.  Maybe I’m not meant to be a merman.”

            “Don’t be ridiculous.  If we can get you to stop thinking so damn much, you’ll be doing it in no time.”  She rubbed her lips together and her eyes flicked down to his before returning to his eyes.  A flush crept up her cheeks. “I might have an idea.”

            The look in her eyes kept Zane from arguing and he clumsily followed when she dove back down.  For a moment he lost her, but then he felt light fingers running along the tops of his arms. Looking up, he found Rikki grinning down at him.  She pushed and pulled his arms into a streamline and covered his hand with her own. Then, she gently settled her body on top of his. Zane was acutely aware of her soft breasts pressing into his bare back, and so he barely registered when she began moving.  He simply followed her motions. He wasn’t sure what happened below the belt on mermen, and he didn’t want to find out in front of Ash and Emma, so he turned his focus to the surrounding reefs and and tropical fish: anything but Rikki.

            And so it took until Rikki tapped his shoulder that Zane realized he had been swimming, quite easily, by himself.  Rikki must’ve separated from him while he was focused on the last reef they’d passed. She was grinning, and it made his chest swell with pride.  Zane’s smile was so wide it almost hurt his face.

 

* * *

 

            All six teens met back in the moon pool at the designated time, though each thought it was far too soon.  Except for Lewis.

            “Lewis has something he wants to test,”  Cleo grinned.

            “Oh God, I thought we were finally done with all that,”  Rikki rolled her eyes. But her attitude didn’t seem to dim Lewis or Cleo’s excitement.

            “It’s not a test for you,”  Lewis began. “It’s for us! I want to see if we have powers like the girls.”

            That perked the rest of them up.  The girls each eagerly demonstrated their abilities before perching themselves on the edge of the pool to watch.  Cleo raised a ball of water into the air to hover above them.

            Zane went first.  He made a fist. Nothing.  He held up his palm. Nothing.  He tried every hand motion he could think of.  But there was nothing. Scowling, he motioned for Lewis to take his place.

            Lewis made a fist.  Nothing. He squinted and held up a palm.  Nothing. Just as Zane was beginning to feel relieved that he wasn’t the only powerless merman, Lewis twisted his wrist.  The water hardened and plummeted down toward the girls. At the last second, the three flew against the far wall of the cavern and the orb thudded down on the sand, unbroken.

            Ash stared in astonishment at his outstretched hand, then to the girls.  He lifted his hand slowly, and Emma rose a few feet into the air, tail and all.  Zane felt his entire body warm with embarrassment.

            “Oh my God!”  Emma yelped. “Ash! put me down!”

            She was immediately deposited back down, none too gently, with an ‘oof’.

            “Oops!  Sorry, love,”  Ash winced. “Still, that was pretty cool.  I guess we know what powers Lewis and I have.”

            Cleo dragged herself back over to the ball of hardened water.  She tapped it thoughtfully.

            “Strange, it isn’t ice.  Or glass, or it would’ve shattered,”  She looked up excitedly. “Lewis, I think this might be something new entirely!  We need to do some testing on it.”

            He joined her in examining the ball.  Rikki rolled her eyes once more at their scientific antics, though secretly she couldn’t wait for them to figure it out either, and looked for Zane to share in her annoyance.  But he wasn’t there.

            “Guys, where’d Zane go?”  She asked, and they all looked around, puzzled; no one had seen him leave.

            “What are you talking about?”  Zane was puzzled. “I’m right here.”  Then he caught sight of his torso, or rather, his lack of it.  “What the fuck! I’m invisible!” And yet, as soon as he said it, the warm feeling left his body and he was visible again.

            “Zane, that was amazing!”  Lewis exclaimed. “Try it again!”

            Zane tried recall the how the warm feeling had flooded his body, and then it was back.  He had a sudden notion, and reaching out, he grasped Ash’s arm. Ash vanished. He let go.  Ash reappeared. He grabbed Ash’s shoulder.

            “Ash, touch Lewis; I want to see how far this can stretch,”  Zane instructed.

            Ash must’ve done so, because Lewis vanished.  Soon the cavern looked empty.

            “This is amazing,”  Rikki said.

            “And helpful,”  Emma added as everyone became visible again.  “But it’s strange; Charlotte got our powers, so why didn’t all of you?”

            “It must be different for mermen,”  Said Lewis. “I can’t wait to see if there are any major differences at the cellular level.  I heard our school science department ordered new microscopes for-”

            “School!”  Emma exclaimed.  “We’re supposed to be at school right now!”

            “Oh no, we’ve never swum through school before,”  Cleo said, slumping.

            “We’ve never dealt with mermen before!”  Rikki looked around at her friends. “Come on, guys, what’s one day of playing hooky?”

            “The school calls home, Rikki.”

            “And my dad already thinks I’ve been sneaking out to see Lewis!”

            “I doubt my father will care,”  Zane said.

            “Mine either,”  Rikki agreed.

            “Thank God I don’t have to worry about that.”

            “Shut up, Ash,”  Emma said without venom.  She shifted. “I guess I’ll just have to tell my parents that the school made a mistake.  It actually _has_ happened before, I just hate lying…”

            “Me too,”  Lewis sighed.  “But I guess I’ll just tell my folks I was doing research and lost track of time.”

            “Shit!”

            “What’s wrong, Ash?”

            “We left the cafe a mess!  Wilfred will kill me.”

            “What time does it open?”

            “Twelve.”

            “Well it can’t be later than ten, judging from the sun.  That gives us a good two hours to clean it up,” Lewis reasoned.

            “You know we’d never let you take the fall, Ash.”  Emma told him with a smile.

  
  



	3. Secrets

            Cleo didn’t bother being quiet as she entered her house; after all, it was well past twelve and her dad should’ve been at work for hours already.  Plus, she was pretty tired from all the cleaning and excitement and she really just wanted to fall into bed. So when she glanced into the living room to find him scowling at her from the couch she couldn’t help but shriek.

            “Dad! What are you doing home?”

            “I think I should be the one asking you, Cleo.  I mean, sneaking out is bad enough, but now you’re skipping school?  I’ve spent half the day worried sick and the other half trying to figure out where I went wrong with you.”

            “Dad, please, I can explain,”  Cleo said, waiting a moment to see if he would cut her off before continuing.  “I... Well, you see…” Her mind was racing nearly as fast as her heart, and she made a split-second decision as Don raised an expectant eyebrow.  “I’m a mermaid.”

            She expected to be reprimanded for lying, not for him to sink back into the cushions, massaging his temples.  Cleo hesitantly took a seat beside him.

            “So it’s true,”  He sighed.

            “Wait, you believe me just like that?  No proof?”

            “I wouldn’t have, at least not at first, but I saw you last night in the water.  I thought it might just my mind playing tricks on me, but then you dove under and didn’t come back up.  And, I must admit, it explains a lot.”

            “Oh.”  Was all Cleo could manage.

            “I’m guessing that your friends are aware?  And Lewis?”

            “Yes.”

            “Did you really feel like you couldn’t trust me with this?”  His voice was tinged with sadness.

            “Oh, Dad, it’s not like that at all; I wished I could tell you every single day.  But when Kim freaked out about it, I thought it would be safer to just keep it to myself, for now.”  He nodded, but she could tell that he wasn’t convinced. But maybe she could replace his gloom with curiosity. She drew a bubble of water from a nearby vase and floated it over until it made contact with her skin, and ten seconds later she was a mermaid.  Once her dad had had time to examine her scales, she held a hand over them and created a strong but focused breeze to blow dry herself. She had only recently mastered the ability and had yet to show the others.

            Don marveled at the whole ordeal.

            “You have powers too?  This is amazing, Cleo. But how is it even possible?”

            “It has to do with Mako Island, and the magic of the moon.”

            “Well, I’m sorry I haven’t been able to help you with this, but from now on I’m going to be there for you.”

            Cleo felt her eyes well up and she was pulled into a bear hug.  She hadn’t realized what a weight had been on her shoulders until it was gone.

            “There, there, it’s all right,”  Her dad soothed. “We’re in this together.  Although I might keep this from your sister until she’s a bit more mature.”

 

* * *

 

            “I can’t believe he reacted so well,”  Rikki said as she floated beside Cleo in the moon pool.  “I mean, I figured he’d think you were lying or slipping him drugs or something.”

            “I know, right? It was bizarre.  I mean, I’m grounded for sneaking out but that’s not anywhere near the worst thing that could’ve happened.  And I feel _so_ much better now that he knows.”

            “I think it might be time to tell all our parents.”

            Cleo and Rikki spun, astonished, but Emma continued to stare at the patterns she was tracing in the sand.

            “Um, Earth to Emma?  You’re the one who’s always going on about keeping it a secret, remember?”  Rikki said.

            “I know,”  Emma sighed before finally facing them.  “But it went so well for Cleo, and I’m just so tired of lying.  It isn’t like we can keep this secret forever, and it’s going to be another fifty years before we can stop being mermaids.  So, I think Rikki, the guys, and I should tell our families.”

            Rikki cleared her throat, a flush creeping up her chest to her cheeks.  She fidgeted, and the other two exchanged a look; this was decidedly un-Rikki-like behavior.

            “I, um, I know I should’ve told you already, but my dad kinda knows.”

            “ _WHAT?_ ”

            “ _RIKKI_ , HOW COULD YOU _NOT_ TELL US?”

            “I know, I’m sorry,”  She winced. “It wasn’t that long ago, and my dad is really superstitious anyway, so he already believed in mermaids.”

            “Would you like to inform us exactly how this happened?”  Emma’s voice was icy.

            “Well, it’s pretty hard to keep a secret when you live in a trailer home with one bathroom; I accidentally left the door unlocked and he didn’t realize I was in there.  I really am sorry.”

            Emma opened her mouth but Cleo, sensing the water grow colder, cut her off.

            “What’s done is done.  We just wish you would’ve told us.”

            “I didn’t want you to be mad at me.  Stupid, I know.”

            “Rikki, you’re not stupid, but it wasn’t your fault.  Of course we aren’t mad, right, Emma?”

            “Just tell us next time something important happens,”  She huffed. “I’m going to go talk to the boys about telling their parents, so please excuse me.”

            Rikki waited until she was gone to speak.

            “She’s going to take a bit to soften back up, huh?”

            “Don’t worry too much, she just needs to cool off.  Or heat up, I guess.”

            “Good one,”  Rikki chuckled.  “Hey, what’s that?”

            The sunlight was glinting off of something on the wall, making Rikki blink and squint.  They swam over and found a small crystal embedded in the stone.

            “Hey, that’s like the one I found here last night.  See if you can get it out.”

            Rikki found that she could, in fact, get it out, and quite easily, too.  She examined it closely.

            “It’s weird; I’ve never seen any of these here before.  Why now?”

            “Let me go home and get mine.  Then we can see if Lewis can find anything special about them.”

 

* * *

 

            A notification pinged on Dr. Linda Denman’s laptop and she paused.  She didn’t normally pay attention to such things, but this wasn’t a normal circumstance.  For one thing, she hadn’t been receiving much communication from the scientific community after her humiliation at the hands of the mermaids.  And for another, this particular notification sound was one that she had set to alert her when the word ‘mermaid’ appeared in her correspondences.  Curiosity got the best of her, and she abandoned her microscope in favor of checking her inbox. A new email from Harrison Bennett sat at the top, the subject line indicating that he’d forwarded her a message from the parents of Emma Gilbert.  Intrigued despite the lack of a mention of mermaids thus far, she opened it to find a brief message from Harrison remarking that they would be working closely once again.

            Linda moved on to read the Gilberts’ message.  Then she read it again. And again. The scientist smiled.

 

* * *

 

            “What are you doing?”  Emma asked as she surfaced in the moon pool, setting her waterproof bag on the sand before pulling herself up next to it.  She raised an eyebrow as she peered around at her friends spread throughout the cavern.

            “We’re trying to find more of these,”  Lewis responded and held up a crystal.

            “Why?”

            “Lewis says they aren’t like anything he’s seen before; when they touch they glow and cause power outages.  He’s calling them moonstones, because of the moon pool.”

            “That’s funny, I found one too,”  She held it up for them to see. “It was right outside of the tunnel.  Maybe they can help us somehow; we should keep them with us.”

            “Good idea, Em,”  Said Ash. “But enough about the moonstones.  How did your talk with your parents go?”

            Emma’s face fell.

            “Well, they didn’t believe me at first.  But once I proved that I really am a mermaid, they accused me of replacing their real daughter.  I’ve never seen them so angry at me before, so I just grabbed as much of my stuff as I could.” She sniffled and gestured to her bag.  “I figured Zane and I could camp out here on Mako until our parents come around.”

            “Oh, I’m so sorry,”  Ash pulled her into his arms while Cleo patted her arm soothingly.  “We’ll explore and find a nice place for you to stay, okay? I’ll stay with you too.”

            “Now that you mention it, we’ve never really taken the time to explore Mako at all; we’re always either here or in the jungle leading here.  It might be a good idea to be more aware of our surroundings since we spend so much time here.” Lewis said.

            “Even more time, now.”  Zane lamented.

            “How about you spend the night with one of the guys, and Emma spends the night with me or Cleo?  That way you can have another night in a real bed. We can look around and set up camp in the morning.”

            “Yeah, good idea Rikki!”

  



	4. Atlantean Herald

            Cleo’s heart raced and she backed slowly out the door, careful not to make a sound.  Denman hadn’t seemed to spot her, but she didn’t know how much time she had before the scientist realized she wouldn’t get anything from Cleo’s dad.  She hurried away from the house, whipping out her phone to fire off a text to meet her at the moon pool and slipping into the water. She’d just have to hope that Denman hadn’t had time to set up underwater cameras again.

 

* * *

 

            “Cleo!  What’s going on?”  Lewis asked. He had to stop himself from helping her out of the water, lest he grow a tail too, and content himself with hovering nearby.

            “Denman,”  she gasped, fear stealing her breath. The name drew curses from the other teens.  “She was asking my dad about mermaids. I barely got out of my house without her seeing me.”

            “Fuck!”  Zane buried his head in his hands.  “I figured we were safe because I’m one of you now, but after my dad kicked me out I should've known he wouldn’t care if I ended up dissected if it meant he could share the glory.  And the money.”

            “This is bad.   _Really_ bad.  We have to get out of here.”

            “It’s too late, Emma,” Zane shook his head.  “She’ll be on her way here already, and we won’t be able to sneak past her if she uses the same techniques that she was preparing last time; underwater nets.  That way she has all the time she wants to search the island without risking us escaping. The only thing we have on her now is the element of surprise; she doesn’t know we know she’s coming.”

            “So we’re stuck on the island.”  Lewis began pacing. “This is the first place she’ll look, so I say we get out now and head for the volcano.  That way we have a good defensive position on higher ground, and they’ll have to cut through jungle to find us.  Unless anyone has any other ideas?”

            They didn’t, so Ash used his telekinesis to float each up the steep land access tunnel before being pulled out by a vine that they lowered to him.  The trek through the jungle was spent in tense silence, each mermaid and merman internally strategizing how their powers might be used to keep the others safe.  Even once they reached the small clearing at the base of the volcano no one spoke a word, choosing instead to arrange themselves in a loose semicircle. Zane reached out to touch Rikki and Emma, ready to turn them invisible, when a shrill shriek broke his concentration.  They whirled to find Cleo gone.

            “Oh my God!”  Lewis hurried over to where his girlfriend had been a moment before.  A human-sized hole was in her place, almost completely concealed by the stones and dirt around it.  He peered down, but could discern nothing from the darkness. “Cleo! Are you down there?”

            For a few heart-stopping moments there was no answer.  Then, miraculously, Cleo’s voice replied from what sounded like far below.

            “Lewis!  I’m here!”

            His shoulders relaxed a bit, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.  Lewis heard Rikki mutter something about this sort of thing happening too often on Mako, but chose to ignore her.

            “Cleo!  Are you okay?”

            “Yes!  Lewis, I fell through the hole, but there’s water down here, so I’m fine.  I just don’t know how to get out unless Ash can lift me.”

            They were all gathered around the hole now, and the merman in question raised a hand, brow furrowed, before dropping it.

            “I can’t do it from this distance without seeing her.”

            “I can try to light it with a fire,”  offered Rikki, but was hastily shot down by the others due to risk of hurting Cleo.  “Okay, okay, just trying to help.”

            “I suppose we could try to find a vine long enough,”  Emma said. “But it would have to be pretty strong. Or,”  She worried her lip between her teeth. “We could go down there too.”

            She was met by raised eyebrows.

            “Are you serious?”

            “Well, we know Cleo didn’t get hurt.  And it would be pretty hard for Denman to find us.  Plus, Ash could lift us all out because he’d know where we were.”

            The others still looked hesitant, but Lewis had to agree with the logic of it.

            “Cleo, how much room is there down there?”  he called.

            “Tons!  I’ve yet to touch a wall.”

            “Then watch out; I’m coming down!”  And with that, Lewis threw himself headfirst down the hole.

            “I can’t believe he just did that.”  Rikki started, but a rustle in the jungle made her freeze.  “I can’t believe _I’m_ about to do this.”  And she followed Lewis into the abyss.

            The remaining three followed soon after.

 

* * *

 

            They found themselves in dark water, the small opening in the cavern roof high above.  The only light sources were the weak beam of sunlight that filtered down and a cluster of moonstones that protruded from the ceiling at one end, leading to a tunnel out of the cavern.

            “Look at those,”  said Zane. “I wonder what’s over there?”

            “Might as well find out; it’s not like we have anything better to do.”  Rikki replied, and promptly shot off with a flick of her tail.

 

* * *

 

            The trail of gleaming crystals came to an abrupt end in front of a smooth expanse of stone wall.

            “Well that was a bit anticlimactic,” Rikki sighed.  She idly ran a finger along the flat stone, frowned, and flattened her whole hand against it.  “That’s weird; it’s really warm.”

            “Rikki,”  Cleo gasped.  “Your moonstone is glowing.”

            It was true.  The moment her palm had made contact with the wall, the blue crystal around her neck lit up.  When she removed her hand, the glow was extinguished. The others joined Rikki by the wall, and together they repeated the action.  Their stones immediately illuminated, and they marveled at the heat now radiating out at them for a moment. Then a powerful force ripped through the tunnel, and the stone beneath their hands retracted into itself with a rumble to reveal a cavern easily twice the size of the one that they’d started in.  The luminescent crystals covered the ceiling, and pockmarking the walls were alcoves filled with piles of scrolls, glittering gems, and countless other artifacts that they couldn’t even begin to identify.

            But what drew the the group’s attention was the stone pedestal that emerged from the water in the center of the room.  It held an enormous gold conch shell that seemed to beckon them with a soft golden glow.

            “What is this place?”  Lewis whispered, moving a few meters closer to the shell.

            “This is all that remains of the lost civilization of Atlantis.”  The disembodied voice echoed around them. A pale figure emerged from the water in front of the pedestal.  She wore a flowing white gown and seemed to float effortlessly, radiating gentle light not unlike moonlight.  If she weren’t so clearly solid, she might have been a ghost.

            “Who- who are you?”  asked Cleo.

            “Do not be frightened.  I am the nereid Thetis, charged by the last king of Atlantis to guard this place and chose his heirs.  I have been watching you since three of you became Mer years ago, and I believe that only you six are worthy of the crown.”

            “You caused us to turn into mermen, didn’t you?”  Zane realized.

            “Yes.”

            Zane looked like he wanted to argue, but Emma shot him a look of warning.

            “What do you mean by ‘heirs’?  How can we rule something that doesn’t exist?  And how can we be rulers when we’re barely adults?”  She asked the nereid.

            “Destiny knows no bounds, and you are destined to raise Atlantis again.  I would not have chosen you if you were not ready,” Thetis smiled. “Come, each of you, and place a hand on the Atlantean Herald to claim your destiny.”

            When the others hesitated, Rikki squared her shoulders and did as Thetis instructed.  Warmth flowed through her and her moonstone lit up again. When nothing else happened, Zane followed.  One by one the six placed a hand on the shell, and once they were all in place the Thetis called upon the Fates in a strange language that they somehow clearly understood.

            Tendrils of gold light extended from the conch to curl around each merperson and lift them into the air.  Shocked, they tried to pull away but found that their hands were stuck fast. They grew warmer as the light grew blindingly bright and they were forced to close their eyes.  Unbeknownst to them, the same light shot briefly from the volcano in a solid beam of gold. Then, in an instant, the light had faded and the shell had lost its glow. Blinking, the group stared at each other and themselves in astonishment.  While they had been attractive young adults already, they now were completely toned and had an ethereal, magnetic quality about them. But that wasn’t the change that drew their focus; each member of the group had a completely different tail.  Their eyes matched their tails, adding to their beauty, and each had a tattoo of crossed tridents in a circle above their left breast that also matched their tails.

            Cleo’s tail was white and had a dazzling opalescent quality that displayed a rainbow of colors at the slightest movement.

            Lewis’s tail was similarly opalescent but had a black base instead of white.

            Emma’s tail was sparkly silver.

            Ash’s tail was a darker, steely silver.

            Rikki’s tail was shiny rose gold.

            Zane’s tail was a rich gold.

            They spent many long minutes admiring the changes before abruptly realizing that Thetis was still there with embarrassment.  Before the transformation, she had had a soft smile. But now she was beaming.

            “I knew you were meant to lead; royalty suits you well.  There are many differences between regular Mer and Royal Mer, but you may discover them on your own.  My power is draining now that my purpose is complete and I must go soon, but I will leave you with the knowledge of your new powers, at least.”  She switched back to the language that she had earlier spoken. “The Queens have already received their secondary powers as part of my tests, but your majesties will found that your power over them has increased.  As for the Kings:

            King Lewis, you may now command plant life and the power of gelidkinesis.

            King Ash, you may now command the power of transmutation.

            And King Zane, you may now command the powers of terrakinesis and metallokinesis.

            Farewell, and good luck.”

            She sank back into the water and disappeared.

            “Wait!”  Cleo cried.  “You can’t go!”

            There was no response.

            “I still have so many questions.”  Lewis complained.

            “Maybe we can find the answers in some of those scrolls or other things in here,”  Emma indicated the various alcoves, some of which were piled with scrolls, and Lewis immediately started toward the closest one.  Emma rubbed the tattoo on her chest absentmindedly, then glancing down with a shriek and covering her bare breasts. “Oh my God, our tops are gone!”

            Cleo and Rikki hurried to cover themselves as well.

            “Okay, this is completely crazy, right?”  Cleo asked as she hugged herself.

            “Honestly, I don’t know.  I mean, being mermaids is pretty crazy, so I can’t say this is much weirder.”  Rikki said.

            “Being royalty tasked with raising the lost city of Atlantis though…”  Cleo trailed off, furrowing her brow. “We’re speaking another language right now.”

            They puzzled over this for a moment before Lewis called over from the alcove he was perched in.

            “It’s called Atlantean,”  He held up an unfurled scroll.  Zane and Ash swam closer, but the girls remained at a distance.  “And all Mer can speak it naturally. I guess it’s our new native language.  But we should be able to switch to other languages pretty easily.” He demonstrated before switching back.  “Just like this! Although Atlantean feels much more comfortable; I never realized how slow and thick English feels.”

            “You said something about Mer?”  asked Emma, barely registering that she was speaking Atlantean.  ‘Huh, Lewis was right about it feeling easier.’ She thought.

            “Yeah, that’s what this scroll calls merpeople.  It’s weird; I was just thinking about what I wanted to read about and I found it right away.”

            “Does it say anything else about Mer, Lewis?”

            Apparently this was the wrong thing to ask, because he immediately launched into what they liked to call ‘science mode’.  Rikki rolled her eyes; she was interested, sure, but she preferred to figure things out through action, not reading.

            “Well, it says a lot that we already knew, like holding your breath for a long time and swimming really fast.  But there’s new stuff, too. According to this, Mer have increased reflexes, agility, strength, senses, and tougher skin.  Plus, we heal faster in water and can use magic.”

            “Magic?  Like our powers?”  Cleo interrupted.

            “I don’t think so…  It seems like this is talking about spells and potions, that sort of thing.  I wonder if there are any scrolls about those lying around…”

            “What about Royal Mer?  Didn’t Thetis say something about that?”

            “Oh!  Right!  That’s the best part; see, we already knew most of this stuff about regular Mer, but all of this information about the Royal variety is completely new.  Now, let’s start with the obvious: Royals have colored tails and eyes, are exceptionally attractive, and have more powers than regular Mer.”

            “Does it mention why we’re suddenly flashing our tits at everyone?”  Rikki was itching to do something, anything, other than listen to Lewis spout off data.  She’d decided that flustering him would do, and indeed her language elicited a blush from the merman.

            “Er, not that I can tell; this part is a bit faded.  But the part that’s legible does offer some _really_ interesting material.  Apparently, Royal Mer have all the same senses and durability and such as normal Mer, but to a higher degree.  They, or we, I suppose, can breathe underwater and swim more than three times faster than before, and also have more magic.  The big one, though, is agelessness, or immortality, unless killed by unnatural means or the throne is abdicated.”

            “Lewis, you’re talking about living forever.”

            “Theoretically, yes.”

            “This is too much,”  Cleo moaned. “I mean, being a Queen is bad enough, but being one _forever_?  I think I need to lie down.”

            For her part, Emma agreed; her mind was racing, and she needed to find something productive to do.  Now. “How about you go sit over there,” She pointed at an alcove filled with precious gems. “And the rest of us can try to go through this stuff.”  She glanced at Rikki, but to her surprise there was no retort. Apparently helping Emma organize was better than listening to Lewis.

            “Wait,”  Zane said.  “Aren’t you guys forgetting what Thetis said about our powers?  She told me I commanded terrible something.”

            “Terrakinesis,”  Ash corrected. “And metallokinesis.  And she said I controlled transmutation.”

            “And I controlled plant life and gelidkinesis.”  Lewis finished for him.

            “Hey, why don’t we get any new powers?”  Rikki asked.

            “You already got your new powers, remember?  She said it was a test or something. But she did say they’d be more powerful.”  Ash replied consolingly.

            “So…  Are we going to figure out how they work?”  Zane asked. “If they’re anything that can help us escape Denman, we should figure them out now.”

            “Oh God,”  Lewis shivered.  “I forgot she’s up there somewhere.  You’re right, Zane, let’s get this figured out.”

            A ball of water rose into the air, then fell back down with a splash.  All eyes turned to Cleo, who looked shocked.

            “How did you do that without moving your hand?”  Emma asked.

            “I don’t know.  I was just thinking about how I’d have to uncover myself to do what I did last time, and then the water just responded as I was thinking about it.”

            “Can you do it again?”

            “I can try.”  She focused on the water, squinting a bit, and again a ball formed and floated up above them.  This time, though, it remained suspended.

            “That’s awesome,”  Rikki marveled. “I hope it works for the rest of us.”

            “Just hurry up and do whatever you’re going to do; I don’t know how long I can keep this up.”

            Lewis raised a hand, trying different motions, and succeeded in transforming the water into a gel-like material when he curled his fingers a certain way.  Cleo’s powers immediately lost their effect and the ball fell a few feet, only to be caught by Ash’s telekinesis.

            “Whoa, look; no hands!”

            “Rikki, it appears your theory was correct.  And I suppose that was gelidkinesis, so now onto plant growth.”  Again Lewis went through the hand motions, but this time nothing happened.  “I wonder why it isn’t working.” He puzzled. “I guess maybe there have to be plants around.”

            “My turn, then,”  Ash said. “Let’s see if I can figure out… whatever transmutation is.”

            “If I remember correctly, it’s the practice of changing something from one material to another.”  Lewis offered.

            “Enough with the talking, let’s just get on with it,”  Rikki complained. Not that she wasn’t interested in the others, but she was eager to see what Zane could do with his powers.  The merman in question flashed her a grin, clearly amused by her antics.

            “Alright, alright.  I wonder...” Ash stared for a moment at the ball.  One instant it was a mass of gelled water, the next it was a golden orb plummeting back down.  “I can’t catch it!” Ash cried.

            It dropped into the water, soaking them and remaining submerged for a few seconds before rising out.

            “Got it,”  Zane grinned.  “As soon as it turned to metal I could sense it.”

            “That must be the metallokinesis.  Can you feel the rock in the walls?”  Lewis asked.

            “Now that I know what to look for, yeah, I can.  But why’d you drop it Ash?”

            “I don’t know; it’s like as soon as I tried to turn it to gold I couldn’t hold it anymore.”

            “Maybe we can’t use more than one power at once,”  Emma suggested. “Try turning invisible, Zane.”

            He did, and again the ball fell.  This time they let it sink.

            “This is amazing.  Just think of all the things we’ll be able to do!”

            “It certainly makes the idea of restarting a nation a bit more reasonable,”  Emma acknowledged. “And definitely gives us a huge advantage over Dr. Denman.”

            “Brilliant, Em; we can take the fight to her now!”  Rikki began moving to the cavern entrance.

            “Rikki, wait!  Don’t you think it’s a bad idea to demonstrate all our powers to her?”

            “She’s right, love.  If I know Denman, she’ll find a way around them.  The element of surprise is still our best option, at least for now,”  Zane was grim again, sobered by memories of the scientist’s plans for the mermaids.  “We might as well stay here until it gets dark out and she has to stop.”

            “Until dark?  What the hell are we supposed to do for that long?”

            “Well, I still think we should sort through the stuff in here.  We might find something else that could help us.” suggested Emma.

            With few other options, they got to work.

  



	5. Chapter 5

           The radio at Linda Denman’s side squawked to life, and one of Harrison Bennett’s hired men issued another report.

           “Still no sign of anyone, ma’am.”

           She cursed under her breath; the moon pool had been deserted, and hours of carefully combing the rest of Mako Island had failed to reveal the mermaids’ whereabouts either.  She’d been certain that she would find them here after Don Sertori had refused to give her any information and she’d deduced that Cleo wasn’t home. Hours ago a beam of gold light had burst from the volcano, and she’d nearly torn the island apart trying to ascertain its source, but there was nothing.  Retreating to the boats to survey the nets and water had seemed like the only viable option, but even an hour of that hadn’t turned up anything.

           “Alright, reel in the nets and prepare to return to the mainland.  We’ll search there tonight, and set up patrols around this island as soon as Harrison completes its purchase.”  Linda hated to throw in the towel without anything to show for it, but sunset was fast approaching and it was clear that nothing was to be gained from Mako today.  Still, she wished she could leave a boat or two to keep an eye out for mermaids or mermen fleeing under cover of darkness, but without ownership of the island that wouldn’t be legal.  The last thing she needed was word getting around that the Coast Guard had turned boats away from Mako, so she could wait a day or two for Harrison to acquire ownership.

           She remained leaning on the railing at the back of the boat, examining the island, as the motor started and they began moving steadily away.  A few fins broke the surface of the water, following at a distance. As they were clearly just a few of the sharks that gave Mako its name, Dr. Denman paid them little attention, and they disappeared once the small boat was a few hundred feet from the island.

 

* * *

 

           The six of them took their time exploring the cavern’s contents, fearful that they might miss something important.  Still, they made quick work of the precious gems. There was also a large amount of moonstones of various sizes that Lewis gathered into an empty chest.

           “I wonder,”  He trailed off, examining the faintly glowing stones before beginning again.  “I wonder if we could use these for protecting the island somehow. It would be helpful if we could rig them to take out the electricity of any boats or scientific equipment that Denman might bring.”

           “That’s brilliant, Lewis!”  Cleo grinned at him, and his chest swelled with pride.

           The girls had been particularly excited about the chests of clothes that they’d found, eager to cover themselves.  There were gowns of fine materials, clearly meant for more formal occasions, as well as much more casual outfits of soft linens, lightweight metals, and leather.  All of them were in a style distinctly reminiscent of Roman or Greek fashion and were a peculiar mix of nature and luxury.

           Emma chose a halter top made of bleached net that was studded with small shells.  The netting was layered right over her breasts to afford her some modesty. She also braided part of her hair back, fastening it with a large white starfish.

           Rikki chose a pair of large scarlet shells that stuck tight to her breasts and were attached to each other with smaller versions of themselves that also wrapped around her back in three thin bands.  She added another band of these to her forearm and chose to let her wild curls stay free.

           Cleo chose a tube top made of a soft, purple canvas material that fit her snugly and criss-crossed up and down her chest.  She pulled her hair back with a headband of turquoise and purple shells.

           Now that they didn’t have to worry about exposing themselves, the mermaids eagerly threw themselves into the search.  There was a significant stock of vials of what they deduced were various potions ingredients. They set those aside for the time being and finally turned their attention to the massive amount of scrolls, all written in Atlantean.  For a while all six Mer read in silence, occasionally speaking up when they found something of particular interest, like the existence of other moon pools. Some of their findings were interesting, like the social structures of Mer pods, but not currently relevant.

           “Hey, come check this out,”  Zane called. He showed them a scroll with delicate illustrations of an island palace.  It was stunning, and even on parchment impressed them. It was designed with nature in mind, flowering vines laced around Greek columns and walkways that melded into the jungle seamlessly.  It was also unmistakably Atlantean, featuring a multitude of shallow pools clearly meant for lounging Mer, floating pavilions, and the symbol of the crossed tridents clearly visible. “I think this is the old palace of Atlantis.”

           “Do you think we could make this?”  Emma asked, skepticism creeping into her voice.

           “Well, with our combined powers I don’t see why not.”  Lewis studied the image. “Keeping it hidden would be very difficult, though.”

           “Not if you can grow plants to cover it,”  Cleo countered. The part of her that had wanted to be a princess since she was little was fueling her excitement, and the clothes had helped her get over the worst of her trepidation.  “Look at it; it seems almost as tall as Mako’s volcano. We could just make it look like part of the mountain until we’re ready to reveal ourselves.”

           “You’d be able to see it if you were on the island, though.”

           “Well we were planning on keeping people away anyways, weren’t we?”  Rikki asked. “I say we build the damn thing, keep everyone off of Mako, and stay out here as much as possible so Denman can’t get us.”

           “That’s… actually a fair point, Rikki,”  Emma told her. “Are there any blueprints, Zane?  That would make it much easier.”

           “Not on this one, but surely one of the scrolls in here will have it.”

           They spread out to search, and quickly came back together when the scroll in question presented itself to Ash.

           “Wow, look; there’s a throne room with a huge fountain!”  Cleo squealed.

           “And three royal suites,”  Zane noted. “And plenty of other bedrooms as well.  I wonder if there were three kings and three queens in Old Atlantis as well.”

           “I’ll read up on Atlantean history some more later,”  Lewis told him. “But what are these?”

           The others squinted at the symbols on the blueprints that Lewis had indicated.

           “I think they’re tunnels,”  Emma concluded. “Tunnels filled with water for quick access around the island.  Look; a couple of them lead out to the ocean.”

           “That would definitely be handy,”  Rikki said. “Maybe we should focus on those first, so we can check to see if Denman is still around.”

           “As long as I have the blueprints, I can at least try.”  Zane responded, and the others nodded eagerly. Though he couldn’t bring himself to say it, their implicit trust in him and his ability made him warm inside.  Determined, he swam to a spot right outside of the entrance to the cavern and focused on the stone wall to his right, making a twisting motion with his hand. Immediately a hole formed and began to fill with water.  He carved deeper, checking the blueprints every so often, thankful that the parchment was waterproof and that he no longer had to worry about coming up for air. He got turned around a few times, but finally the last stretch of stone fell away and he emerged underwater at the edge of Mako Island.  A few hundred feet away he could barely make out what seemed to be nets being pulled back in.

           “It worked!”  He exclaimed when he reached his waiting friends, and they cheered.  Rikki threw her arms around him.

           “Finally, I’m not stuck in here anymore!”  She cried and pressed a kiss to his lips. “I knew you could do it.”

           “Way to go, man,”  Lewis congratulated him.  “What did you see out there?”

           “It looked like Denman was pulling her nets in and getting ready to leave; if we stick close to the reefs around the island, we should be fine.”

           Sure enough, the boats’ motors were just starting up when the small group emerged from Zane’s tunnel.

           “Should we try to hide the entrance?”  Emma asked, gesturing back to the hole.  It had been uncomfortable at first, but they’d quickly grown accustomed to speaking and breathing underwater - though Atlantean seemed to be the only language that worked.

           “Let me try something.”  Lewis raised a hand, fingers extended, and some nearby seaweed began to grow until it completely obscured the tunnel’s entrance.

           “You figured it out!”  Cleo clapped.

           A strange, deep voice interrupted her celebration.

           “Your majesties, forgive my intrusion.”

           They turned to find a large shark skirting them.

           “Did you just talk?”  Cleo asked, for once recovering from her shock before the others.

           “Indeed, your majesty.  I am Sandar.”

           “Pleasure to meet you, Sandar,”  Rikki said, an idea quickly forming.  “May we ask you for a favor?”

           “Of course, your majesty.”  The shark didn’t seem overeager, but Rikki pressed on.

           “Could you and the other sharks keep all humans away from the island?  Like scaring them as best you can without killing them?”

           “Gladly, your majesty.  I will see to it at once.”  Her request had undeniably perked Sandar up, and the others glared at her when he had left.

           “What?  I thought we wanted people away from Mako!”

           “We don’t want to set sharks on them though, Rikki.”  Emma scolded, before allowing herself a small smile. “But it is pretty cool that we can talk to animals.”

           They made their way to the surface and stayed low to watch the boats depart, trailed by sharks.  Once they’d disappeared into the distance, the six made their way to the beach and dried themselves under the starlight.

           “Oh, fuck,”  Rikki groaned.  “Our eyes and tattoos haven’t gone back to normal; we’re going to need to hide them if we want to go back to the mainland.”

           “Our Atlantean clothes switched over with us, too,”  Cleo noted as she peeked underneath the regular t-shirt that had reappeared.

           “All the more reason to stay on Mako, I suppose,”  said Lewis. “We better get going; we have a lot to do tonight before Denman comes back tomorrow.”

 

* * *

 

           They settled on the clearing right next to the volcano, and Ash turned the dirt floor to rough marble.  As Zane set about smoothing it and making the palace’s foundation, the others looked over the blueprints and devised a plan: Rikki would provide light and make sure they were following the blueprints; Cleo would use water from a nearby stream to form walls, ceilings, and whatever else was needed; Lewis or Emma would harden or freeze the water, respectively; Ash would turn it to marble or another material; and Zane would smooth everything, ensure its structural integrity, and add details as directed by Rikki.  Lewis would complete it by adding decorative plants as well as growing the jungle to conceal it from above and afar. They set to work, happy to get further practice with their powers.

           It was slow going and they had to redo more than a few sections.  They also found that using their powers for hours on end was draining; each had the strange feeling that they’d be sore the next day.  It was late into the night when they finally finished.

           “This is incredible.”  Zane breathed. He was the most used to luxury out of all of them, but even he had never seen anything like the massive structure that loomed before them.

           The white marble of the palace gleamed under the moon and stars and the shallow lounging pools beside the covered walkways reflected them flawlessly.  Delicate, flowering vines wrapped around the Greek columns and were interwoven across the walls and ceilings. The symbol of the circled tridents was protruded from the marble above the arch that served as the main entrance.  For something so out of place on the jungle island, the palace seemed oddly natural among the various plants that kept it concealed.

           “We did a good job,”  Rikki grinned; even she had dreamt of living in a castle as a child.  “The only things left are the floating pavilions, if we can figure out how to make them, and the tunnels.”

           “The pavilions will probably be too hard to hide anyway, so we can hold off on them for now.”  Lewis replied.

           “As for the tunnels, I can get started on them once I get a chance to rest first,”  Zane offered. “But don’t you want to see the inside of this thing before all that?”

           They agreed unanimously, and set off exploring, using the blueprints to explain each room’s purpose.

           Of the palace’s three towers, one was designed to hold prisoners, another to serve as the treasury, and the last to serve as the armory.  The main section of the palace had five main floors, with smaller towers and spires building up off of the curved crystalline top.

           On the first floor there were offices of varying size, a large dining hall meant for casual meals, a large kitchen, an enormous pantry, and the long throne room.  They found the throne room most exciting, with its six crystalline thrones on a raised dais, intricate carvings, central fountain, and huge windows. In fact, the whole palace seemed to let in as much natural light as possible.

           The second and third floors were found to host a huge library, a few lounges, and an assortment of bedrooms and small apartments.  Like the other rooms they’d seen, the six noted what would be required to furnish the space and Zane added what they couldn’t simply make with their powers to his list.  This was comprised of mostly rugs, cushions, other fabric goods, and various modern appliances.

           The fourth floor had the larger apartments for important Atlantean officials and visiting dignitaries, a small pantry and kitchen, larger offices, and a formal dining room.  While every floor contained rooms meant for entertainment, this floor had the most elaborate. These included a darkened room which, with a little magic, would become an interactive model galaxy and an indoor pool complete with a waterfall.

           The fifth floor housed a laboratory, council room, small library, small kitchen, and the three suites belonging to the royals.  Each suite included a large office, a sitting room, a master bedroom and bath, two walk-in closets, and a balcony that sported a small lounging pool.  Rikki, Lewis, Cleo, Ash, and Emma were ecstatic, but Zane found himself speechless; he had prided himself on his worldliness growing up, but this was beyond anything he had ever imagined.

           “This is way better than a fairy tale!”  Cleo squealed. “Let’s put the clothes we found into our closets!”

           “They’re so big, though; even with our clothes from home we’ll have half a closet left.”  Emma said, though she clearly wasn’t complaining.

           “I guess we’ll just have to go shopping.”  Rikki sighed with mock disappointment.

           “You girls go ahead and do that.  We’ll help Zane with the tunnels, and I’m also going to see if we can use those moonstones we found to set up some kind of EMP perimeter around the island.”

 

* * *

 

           They collapsed into the leafy mattresses that Lewis had made them for the night.  All of the clothes had been distributed into the six closets. There had been a fair share of arguing until the girls realized they could easily borrow from each other.

           Zane’s water-filled tunnels criss-crossed the island, and they would have to spend the next few days learning to navigate the underground maze.

           Lewis had discovered he could use water to cure two chips of moonstone together to create a field that disabled any and all electricity.  Adding another stone, like the ones that they wore around their necks, would counteract this effect. He hid the combined moonstones deep inside of spiral shells, then attached them to the ocean floor at regular intervals in a circle around the island.  Anyone who came within twenty feet of the circle, or anywhere inside it, would find themselves unable to use their electronic devices without a moonstone of their own.

           Finally, Rikki, Cleo, Ash, and Lewis called their parents to let them know where they would be staying and warn them about the Denman situation.  They’d been incredulous when their children told them that they were kings and queens now, but didn’t argue. Don agreed to pick up some colored contact lenses for them and start shopping for the items on their list, though he and the other parents had been hesitant to dip into their children’s college funds.  The mention of the group’s easy access to valuable gems and metals, however, finally convinced them that they’d be fine.


	6. The Call

           "You've reached Harrison Bennett."

           "I couldn't get onto Mako Island." Dr. Denman ground out into her cellphone. The cheery atmosphere of the JuiceNet cafe didn't match her sour mood, but she'd wanted to stake it out to see if any of the mermaids or mermen showed up. So far, nothing.

           "What? Why not?"

           "There's some sort of field around it that turns the boats off once you're about 500 feet out. I'd think it was a regular EMP, but everything worked again once we paddled back about twenty feet."

           "Did you try paddling to the island?"

           Linda thought back to the horde of sharks that had swarmed them when they tried.

           "The sharks went berserk, but those waters are protected so we couldn't shoot them. Besides, my equipment wouldn't have worked even if we got there."

           "Well, the deal will be finalized tonight and we'll have complete control of the waters around Mako; you'll be able to kill sharks to your heart's content."

           "Good. I'm going to kill those freaks if they had anything to do with this." Harrison started to respond, but she hung up.

 

* * *

 

            Nathan Cunningham, 'Nate' to everyone but his parents, waited until the pretty woman had slid out of the booth behind him and left them cafe. His mind was racing as he formulated his newest dare.

           "What's up, Natey?" Miriam flounced up, and he gave the busty blonde an appreciative once-over. Ever since Zane had made his feelings for Rikki clear, Miriam had switched her attentions to him and he was happy to let her.

           "I just heard the most interesting thing about Mako Island," he told her. "Apparently it's become somewhat of a restricted area."

           "Why would anyone want to go to Mako anyway?" Miriam wrinkled her nose.

           "It's a pretty mysterious place. But this makes it even better, and I'm going to be the one who makes it there and gets the glory." He puffed out his chest and climbed up to stand on top of the table.

           Wilfred began to protest, then gave up and just rolled his eyes, muttering about teenagers.

           "Listen up everyone! It's come to my attention that some people think Mako is a dangerous place. So I'm issuing the Mako Island Challenge: whoever can get onto the island and take a picture next to the volcano wins!"

           There were a few murmurs from the audience, but nowhere near the excited reaction he was looking for - the excited reaction Zane might have gotten. Nate was stumped for a moment before lighting up again.

           "The winner will receive the $1000 prize, plus everyone's entrance fee of $200! Meet at the marina at five."

           This sent the gathered teens into an excited chatter and they all whipped out their phones to spread the word. After mingling for a bit, basking in the attention of his peers, Nate slipped out. He shot a succession of texts off to his best friend and headed off to work on his boat, Miriam trailing behind.

 

* * *

 

           The six Royal Mer had watched from the treeline as Dr. Denman's boats approached, stalled, and were turned back by the sharks. They waited until they were certain she was headed back to the mainland before returning to their palace, satisfied that the protections were enough to keep them safe. The rest of the afternoon was spent waiting for Cleo's dad to arrive with the first of the supplies. He'd been warned about the perimeter and would therefore be met by Cleo and given a moonstone so that he could pass through. To pass the time, the group set about creating an orchard and gardens.

           "Hey guys, I think we might be getting some company," Zane said as they were enjoying some of the fresh fruit. "I just got a text from Nate about some competition to get to Mako Island."

           "A competition? That doesn't sound very good." Emma worried her lip between her teeth.

           "Do you think Denman could be behind it?"

           "Not on purpose," Zane shook his head as he scrolled further through the texts. "He said he heard someone talking about weird things stopping her from getting to Mako so he decided to make it a competition. Grand prize is $1000 plus each contestant's $200 entrance fee."

           "Jesus Christ, Nate, can't you stop causing us trouble?" Rikki ran a hand through her curls. "When does it start?"

           "Five o'clock, at the marina. My guess is they'll be at the boundary circle by five-thirty."

           "What do we do?" Cleo's eyes were wide.

           "Tell your dad he'll have to wait until after dark to come out here," Zane told her. "Lewis, how effective can we assume that the sharks and moonstones will be?"

           "Effective enough to keep most of them out, definitely. But once they start trying to sail or paddle, the sharks might be spread a bit thin. Depending on how many actually attempt it, of course."

           "I can disrupt the wind," Cleo pointed out. "So sailing won't be an option. And we can ask the sharks to mess up the paddles."

           "Alright, so we should be good. But, in the off chance that someone makes it to the beach, what's our plan? We can't let them get close to the volcano or they'll see this place and know something's up."

           A smirk crept across Rikki's lips that immediately made Emma and Lewis uneasy, if only from experience.

           "Well, everyone thinks this place is wild and mysterious, right? So why don't we play that up," She started, then spent the next few minutes laying out her idea. The others came around quicker than she'd expected, and Rikki had a sneaking suspicion that their transformation had gotten them closer to their wilder mermaid sides.

           Cleo sent her dad a few updates, and they set off to carry out Rikki's orders.

 

* * *

 

           Nate slammed his hand onto the boat's railing in frustration, and Miriam rubbed his arm, simpering beside him as she tried to calm him down. He'd thought it would be a simple win; the other contestants didn't know that their boats would stop working, so while they tried to figure out what was wrong Nate would be able to sail past easily. But as soon as he'd crossed the invisible boundary, the wind abruptly changed and pushed him away. Now he was on even footing with everyone else. Part of him wished Zane were here, but he knew that the other boy would figure it out and show him up if he was.

           There were a few cheers from the many spectators gathered, and he turned to find two of the five other contestants beginning to paddle their way toward Mako. But the cheers quickly turned to screams as the water around the two boats churned, a frenzy of sharks buffeting them. Their paddles were quickly lost, and the contestants sat helplessly as they were battered around, only for the huge sharks to disappear as soon as the boats had drifted far enough away.

           Nate had no idea what was going on with Mako Island, but his failure in front of everyone else made him even more determined to reach it.

 

* * *

 

           Linda Denman was furious. She'd planned on trying to get to Mako again, only to find that some local teen, Nathan Cunningham, had made a competition of it. There was no way she could be discreet out there while it was such a source of local obsession, at least not until she had the owner's permission. She checked her watch; it was well past eight, so Harrison should have already signed for the island. She hadn't heard from him since right before the purchasing meeting, when he'd sent her a short message saying that they needed to discuss something. She contemplated calling him when her phone rang.

           "Hello? Is this Dr. Linda Denman? Business associate of Harrison Bennett?" A female voice asked. That was odd, as caller I.D. had shown it was Harrison's office number calling.

           "This is. How may I help you?"

           "Hi, I'm Kerry Walker. I'm sorry to inform you of the passing of Harrison Bennett as a result of an automobile accident earlier this evening. Walker Funeral Home will be in touch with all friends, family, and business associates with more information about the service in a few days. My condolences to you."

           "Th-thank you." She hung up, stunned. What was she going to do without her biggest benefactor and believer? After a few deep breaths, Dr. Denman picked her phone back up; she needed to see if the island transfer had been completed.

 

* * *

 

           Don marveled as Ash used his telekinesis to easily unload the fishing boat, then went back to examining the bracelet with the small moonstone that they had given him. He'd been given five more identical to his to distribute to the Doves, McCarthys, and Mr. Chadwick.

           "Are you kids sure that you'll be alright out here?"

           "We're not kids, Dad," Cleo rolled her eyes. "We're all eighteen. Well, except Ash; he's nineteen..."

           "Would you like to see our place?" Lewis asked him.

           "That would be great, Lewis. I was wondering where you were going to fit all of this stuff," He gestured to the boxes of mattresses, rugs, curtains, and various other furnishings. "Though I don't think I want to know what those awful skulls are for."

           Rikki just grinned, already planning where to place them to elicit the most fear from trespassers; they'd been among the last minute things that the group had requested earlier. After making sure the boat was secure on the makeshift dock that Lewis had hardened from the water, they set off.

           When they reached the palace, Don's jaw nearly unhinged as it dropped, and Cleo giggled with undisguised glee.

           "You- You _made_ this?" He gaped. "All in one night?"

           "Told you," Cleo said.

           "Yes, but I thought you must have been exaggerating. This is incredible."

           "Come on, Dad, I'll give you a tour."

           Rikki lit the chandeliers and other light fixtures as they took him from room to room. Each one drew further praise and astonishment. The only part he hadn't liked was the sleeping situation, though he didn't verbalize his opposition to his daughter sleeping with her boyfriend.

           "Now you see why we need so much stuff," Zane said when they'd finished. "We can make a lot, but-"

           He was interrupted by the ringing of his cellphone in his pocket. The number on the screen made his heart skip a beat and he hesitated a moment before answering.

           "Dad?" The others exchanged looks.

           "I'm sorry, is this Zane Bennett?" A soft female voice asked from the other end.

           "Yes, it is. Who is this?"

           "My name is Kelly Walker. I am so, so sorry, but your father was in an automobile accident earlier this evening. He passed away on the way to the hospital."

           "Oh," Zane gave a little laugh. "There must be some mistake. It couldn't have been him. Are you sure it was him?" His voice broke a little on the last word.

           "I'm sorry, Mr. Bennett. His car matched his records and a neighbor identified the remains. I know that this is an incredibly difficult time for you, so I hope it helps that all of the necessary arrangements are being taken care of by Walker Funeral Home."

           "Thank you," Zane choked back another sob. He remembered Walker Funeral Home from his childhood, when his mother had died. Tears streamed down his face, and he felt Rikki's arms wrap around him and her head dropped to rest on his back. The feeling grounded him."Is there anything else?"

           "The reading of his will has been requested for tomorrow by another party. However, your father's lawyer has already looked it over and, as you are the only one mentioned and are the next-of-kin, you may determine whether you would prefer a different date and who you would like to be there."

           Zane's blood, icy a second before, boiled. The thought of going straight for the Bennett wealth so soon after his father's death disgusted him, but he had a pretty good idea of who wouldn't have such qualms.

           "I would prefer if we could move that to the next day. I will be attending will Rikki Chadwick. No one else." He squeezed Rikki's hand.

 


	7. Trespassing on Private Property

           Zane allowed Rikki to help him into his dark suit.  After she’d outfitted the suite to their liking, the two had spent the previous day lying in bed, doing nothing but moping and eating junk food from the mainland.  Nate had called once he’d heard the news, and Zane had spent a while talking to him about it. The guy could be an idiot, but he cared.

           The competition had continued all day, but the other four had assured them that they could handle it.  No one had made it to the beach yet, and there had been no sign of Denman.

           But today was a different day, and Zane’s hands were shaking too hard to even tie his tie, so he just stood there and let him do it.  Rikki wore a simple, dark dress, determined not to stand out. They both wore the colored contacts that changed their eyes back to normal.  They would swim to shore, invisible, where Don Sertori would meet them with a car and drive them to the office of the lawyer overseeing the bequeathments, a Mr. Adrian Aku.

           Before he knew it, Zane was standing in the office, clutching Rikki’s hand desperately in one of his and shaking the lawyer’s hand with his other.  The older black man gave off the formal vibes of many of Harrison’s business associates, and Zane would’ve bristled if he wasn’t so numb.

           “Please, Mr. Bennett, Miss Chadwick, take a seat.  My condolences for your loss.” He continued once they were settled.  “Though your father’s passing was, of course, untimely, I am sure that you are aware that he prepared for such a case.  But before we get to the reading of his will, I would like to present you with this; a letter, addressed to you, found in his suit pocket after the accident.  Please, take your time. I’ll be in the other room when you’re finished.” Rikki accepted the letter and waited until the door had softly clicked shut to open it.

           “Do you want me to read it?”  She asked when Zane made no movement to take it.

           He hesitated then shook his head; he wanted to see his father’s handwriting for himself, even if the words were full of hatred.  Rikki handed it over silently, and he cleared his throat to read it aloud.

           “‘Zane, my dearest son,’”  He blinked back a few tears.  “‘I am so sorry for the pain I have put you through.  I have never been as loving or as supportive as you have always deserved.  As your mother would have been. Recent events especially have brought out the worst in me, and I have only just begun to see the error in my ways.  I’ve failed you, and I can understand if you never want to see me again. But, if you’ll let me, I’d like to make it up to you. I’ve purchased Mako Island from the government and have signed it over to you; it is yours, regardless of the status of your feelings towards me.  I’m not just trying to buy your affection, though. If you would be willing to talk to me, please meet me at the marina at sunset tomorrow night. I’ll make sure that Linda is not around. If you wish to have nothing more to do with me, then please know that I love you, and I’m sorry.  And keep Rikki close; she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to you. Love, Dad.’” The tears were hot on his cheeks, and he sniffled noisily.

           “I am so sorry.”  Rikki’s eyes were brimming with tears, and she pulled him close.  He clung to her for a few minutes until he felt sufficiently numb again.

           They brought Mr. Aku back in and he went over the details of the ownership of Mako Island and Zane’s position as the sole beneficiary of the Bennett estate.  Rikki took messy notes while Zane just sat and listened, offering short answers when necessary.

           “And so, the total value of all of your bequeathments, excluding Mako Island, is around ten billion dollars.”  The lawyer finished. Rikki nearly fell out of her chair, and Zane shook off his daze, eyes wide. Sure, he’d known his family was wealthy, but this?

           “Surely you meant million, Mr. Aku?”

           “No, Mr. Bennett, the total value has been appraised at ten billion dollars.  Not all of this is immediately liquid, of course, as it includes a sizeable stock portfolio and real estate.  All you need to do is sign these documents for me, and we’ll be done here.”

 

* * *

 

           Nate smacked his lips and deposited his empty juice glass on the counter for Wilfred to collect.  He dawdled a moment, stalling before he had to return to the table where Miriam was waiting; she’d just go back to chattering about the Mako Island contest, reminding him of his failure.  At least he had some consolation, however, as it had been a week since the contest started and no one had made it onto the beach yet. The farthest anyone had gotten was fifty feet out, and with each passing day and each failure word spread and more contestants entered.  The prize was up to $10,000 already.

           “Hey, Nate,”  He turned to find Byron greeting him.  “Crazy about those new signs, isn’t it?  The whole thing is so mysterious. I’m starting to doubt whether anyone will ever make it out there.”

           Byron had made his attempt on the second day, making it halfway between the island and its boundary before the sharks forced him back.  But Nate wasn’t sure of what he was referring to.

           “What signs, Byron?”

           “The keep out signs, of course.  Haven’t you seen them? They go in a big circle around the island, pretty much mark the point where the boats die.  Showed up this morning.”

           “But Mako Island is public property, we’ve always been allowed to go before.  We just, well, didn’t.” Nate was puzzled, and the nearest teens had moved closer to hear what he was talking about.  Miriam found her place by his side.

           “Not anymore.  It’s private property now; the government just sold it.  Of course, they didn’t realize it’s far enough off the Australian coast for them to have lost jurisdiction once it was sold.  It’s a private nation now, for all intents and purposes.” The speaker was the mature blonde woman who had originally given him the idea for the contest.  She seemed slightly disheveled as she surveyed him from her booth, and a flash of disgust had warped her face when she mentioned the sale.

           “Sold it?  To who? And how do you know that?”

           “The buyer was anonymous, but apparently they paid a small fortune for it.  And I know because I was trying to do research on the island, but now I’m barred from entering.  Whoever bought it is certainly going to great lengths to hide whatever they’ve got there.”

           The prospect of some mysterious person or organization hiding something on Mako Island set the cafe’s patrons whispering.

           “Does that mean the contest is off?”  A teen named Lee asked.

           “Off?  No way!  Now we _have_ to find out what they’re hiding on that island.”

           The crowd cheered and dispersed, everyone speculating about what kind of secret treasure could be hidden on the impenetrable island, while Nate and Miriam slid into the open seat across from the older woman.

           “I’m Nate Cunningham, and this is Miriam Kent.  Is there anything else you can tell us about Mako Island?”

           “Nice to meet you.  My name is Linda Denman,”  She kept her voice low. “I don’t know much for sure, but I do know that someone was desperate to keep my marine biology research away from the island.  And that Mako has long been associated with legends of water spirits and mythical creatures. Like mermaids.”

 

* * *

 

           The first day that a contestant reached the beach of Mako also happened to be the day the first Mer arrived.

           It was nearing sunset, and Zane was settled comfortably against a tree right inside the treeline, giving him a clear view of the boundary.  He allowed his thoughts to wander, as watch duty was pretty boring and the boats always left when it started to get dark. The sharks kept everyone back, and no one had even gotten close to Mako since Byron had two weeks ago.  For a few minutes he dozed, then was startled into alertness by a sudden shrill voice.

           “Your majesty, news from the Sharp-Toothed Ones,”  A small, colorful bird, hopped anxiously in the sand.  He was one of the small group of animals who had taken an extra interest in the six Royal Mer, and called himself Niko.  Zane nodded for him to continue. “A Mer has arrived, and they are escorting her to the far beach. Shall I inform the other majesties?”

           “Yes please, Niko, if you would.”  Niko took flight and Zane stretched, gazing out at the boats gathered outside the ring out warning signs.  There was no sign of movement, and Zane deliberated; he was supposed to be on duty, but he didn’t want to miss the arrival of the first of the Mer.  His excitement won out, and Zane turned and sprinted into the depths of the jungle. The others were already gathered around the new mermaid as she rested on the beach when he arrived.  Her coppery orange tail was laid out in the sand and reminded him of what the girls’ tails had previously looked like.

           “-And I’m Rikki Chadwick,”  Rikki was finishing. “Would you like me to dry you off?”

           “Oh, I can manage, but thank you.”  The mermaid replied with a smile and made a fist over her body.  The water covering her immediately turned to gel, and fell away, and she regained her legs.

           “Whoa,”  Zane said from behind the others, and they turned with a start.  “That’s like Lewis’s power!”

           “Zane, what are you doing?  I thought you were on watch duty,”  Rikki turned around. “That’s my boyfriend, Zane Bennett: the other one we told you about.”

           “Nice to meet you, Zane.  I’m Bella Hartley.” She flashed him a grin.

           “Nice to meet you too.  And come on Rikki, I couldn’t miss the first one!  Besides, those idiots always leave around sunset.” His statement was immediately followed by a squawk as a vaguely familiar-looking magpie swooped down.

           “Your majesties!  One of the humans is within reach of the shore; he crossed quickly while the Sharp-Toothed Ones were distracted by the young mermaid!”  They sprang into action as soon as she finished.

           “Cleo, quickly, shape our masks and then take Bella to the palace and keep her safe there.  Sandar, return to the boundary with your people and ensure that no other humans cross. The rest of us will follow the plan Rikki came up with.  Let’s go.” Emma ordered. The sharks took off as Cleo immediately drew water into the shape of seven masks, which Lewis hardened and Ash transformed into milky white quartz.  They each took one and put it on, allowing Lewis to cure it gently to their skin before they scattered, each with a specific duty and destination in mind. Bella just did her best to keep up with Cleo.

 

* * *

 

           Jason Harris couldn’t believe it; he had actually made it to Mako Island.  Nate had goaded him into trying one last time before they all returned home, and he’d fully expected the sharks to mangle his paddles like everyone else’s.  But they hadn’t touched him at all. He secured his boat on the sand, then turned back to face the others, raising his arms in victory and earning a cheer from those gathered.  Oddly enough, the water was full of gliding shark fins again, but Jason shrugged it off and decided he must have been destined to get the prize money.

           The thought of the prize money returned his mind to the task at hand; finding the volcano and getting a picture.  He easily spotted the natural entrance to the jungle before him, but his blood ran cold and, against his better judgment, he moved closer to examine it.  A human skull was mounted on a sharpened stake at either side of the trailhead. A piece of driftwood containing bloody symbols rested against on of the stakes, and he felt sure that it had to be some sort of warning.

           “Come on, Jason,”  He tried to psyche himself up.  “Don’t be a pussy.” Without allowing himself time to hesitate, he threw himself forward a few steps down the trail.  When nothing happened, he let out a breath of relief and strode forward until he was just out of sight of the beach.

           “Ke tanaav meluruu, manawa atauu e makee.”  He spun to find his path back to the beach blocked by a woman.  She wore an opaque mask that covered the top half of her face, leaving only her shimmering rose gold eyes exposed, and yet he could still tell that she was easily the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.  Her seashell top and short, gladiator-style leather skirt accentuated her figure while adding to her native air. She repeated her words in the strange flowing tongue and brandished a wicked-looking trident at him.

           “I- I don’t understand what you’re saying!”  He pleaded, but this didn’t seem to please her.  “Who are you? What-”

           Then something heavy connected with the back of his head and the world went black.

 

* * *

 

           “And I can really live here?”  Bella asked as her tour ended.

           “Of course,”  Cleo told her.  “It’s going to be nice having someone else here; we’ve been talking about how empty it felt.”

           “I don’t have much money, but I can ask my parents to help out.  I told them about the Summoning before I left.”

           “Don’t be silly, you don’t have to pay us anything.  Besides, we’re pretty well funded. But what do you mean by ‘Summoning’?”

           “I don’t know how to describe it exactly, but it’s like a feeling inside me that’s pulling me here.  I just assumed you started it.”

           “When did it start?”

           “A little more than two weeks, why?”

           “Ah,”  Cleo nodded.  “That’s when we were crowned.  It must have happened without us realizing.”  The sound of voices carried up to them from below.  “Sounds like the others are back, let’s go see how it went.”

           They met the others at the palace entrance.

           “Judging by your smiles, I’m guessing it went well?”  Cleo gave Lewis a peck on the lips as he pulled her into his arms.

           “The plan went off without a hitch,”  Rikki grinned. “It was that asshole Jason Harris, and he looked ready to piss himself.”

           “Or cream himself,”  Zane muttered in annoyance.  “That was my girlfriend he was ogling.”

           “Zane,”  Emma chastised.  “Not in front of Bella, she hardly knows you!”

           “Right, sorry.  How did you like your tour?”

           “This place is like Heaven!  And Cleo told me so much about all of you, I’m so excited to be here.”

           “We’re excited to have you,”  Cleo said warmly. “And, based on what Bella said, we might be having more Mer before long.  Apparently that Herald thing that transformed us also started a summons.”

           “We’ll have to alert the sharks to that.  Maybe the dolphins can be our official escorts for arriving Mer.”  Lewis pondered logistics for a moment, and Emma took the chance to cut in.

           “Has Cleo gotten you settled in, then?”

           “Actually, we hadn’t gotten to that part yet,”  Bella admitted. “Although I don’t really have many belongings to settle in with; I left pretty quickly.”

           “Oh, don’t worry, we’ll take you shopping on the mainland, and get you some Atlantean clothes made as well.  But first, we’ve got to figure out where to put you.” Emma tapped her chin. “I have an idea, but I need to discuss it with the others for a moment if you don’t mind.”

           “Of course not.”  Bella stepped away, though apparently a consensus was quickly reached because she was beckoned back over in less than a minute.

           “We would like to offer you a position as our royal advisor,”  Ash explained. “Do you except?”

           “Well, I don’t know if I’m really ‘royal advisor’ material, but I’d be honored to do it if you’ll let me.”

           “It’s settled then; Bella will be our advisor, and take one of the apartments on the fourth floor.”  Emma smiled warmly at her.

           “Let’s go check it out,”  Rikki said. “I’m sure you’ll be great.”

 

* * *

 

           The fiery orange glow of the early morning sun illuminated Rikki’s face as she slept, and Zane gazed lovingly down at her from his place in bed beside her.  She looked somehow angelic and fierce at the same time; a force of nature all by herself. He couldn’t keep himself from reaching down to tenderly brush away a curl.  Her hand caught his as he pulled it away, intertwining their fingers, and she blinked her sleepiness away with an easy smile.

           “I love you,”  he murmured, lowering into a lazy, lingering kiss.

           “I love you too,”  she murmured back when he came up for air.

           A sudden feeling of wholeness flooded him, and Zane said his next words without the slightest hesitation.

           “Marry me.”

           “What?”  Rikki’s brow wrinkled in confusion.

           “I’ve been thinking about what my dad said in his letter, about keeping you close.  Actually, I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. I was going to get a ring, but lying here with you… I love you, Rikki Chadwick, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.  So, will you marry me?”

           “Yes,”  Rikki managed through a watery smile.  “Yes. Yes; I would marry you a thousand times, Zane Bennett.”

  



	8. Where There's a Will

           The JuiceNet cafe was filled to the brim with eager customers, Nate at the center of it all as he enjoyed another complimentary juice. His contest had more than doubled the juice bar's business, and in response Wilfred had added $10,000 to the prize and had dedicated an entire wall in the cafe to tracking the contestants' progress. Ever since last week when Jason Harris had woken up on the beach back at the mainland with no memory of how he'd gotten there and tales of beautiful natives, five more contestants had made it past the beach with similar results. With encouragement from Nate and Miriam, rumors of a secret island society that worshipped mermaids abounded. Not that they believed it, of course, but it added to the island's mystery and made the contest even more attractive to thrillseekers. At least twenty of the most recent recruits were foreigners who had traveled to the Gold Coast to enter.

           "Excuse me, you're Nate Cunningham, right?" Nate looked up to find a man about his age looking down at him.

           "The one and only. I don't think we've met."

           "I'm Will Benjamin, you might've seen me around; I'm local but homeschooled." He gave Nate a firm handshake.

           "Thought you looked familiar. What can I do for you?"

           "I'd like to enter your contest."

           "Glad to hear it, though good luck getting anywhere further than the water; the best of the best have tried and most failed," Nate neglected to mention that he'd been one of those in the majority camp. "Do you have your $500 entrance fee?" The price had increased with the rise of the contest's popularity.

           "My sister's got it, she's around here somewhere. But I also wanted to discuss my plan with you, seeing as I'll need your help."

           "I'd be happy to hear it, though I don't know safe it is to give away your strategy to another contestant."

           "Oh, you can have half the prize if I win," Will waved it away dismissively. "So what was thinking is-"

           "Will!" A petite redhead squeezed through the crowd into the middle of their little meeting. She was holding a stack of cash.

           "This must be your sister." Miriam bristled where she was pressed against his side as Nate eyed her appreciatively.

           "I'm Sophie," She offered her hand, batting her lashes. "Of course, I don't have to ask who you are. Has my brother already told you about our plan?"

           "We were just getting to it."

 

* * *

 

           "You have got to be kidding me," Rikki grumbled as the sound of a horn, too low for humans to hear, alerted them that someone had crossed the boundary.

           "Can they just give up already?" Cleo dramatically threw her head back, peering up at the cloudless sky as if it would answer her.

           "Apparently not while there's still money to be won," Rikki pulled herself up out of the shallow lounging pool and reluctantly dried herself. "If Nate interrupts my sunbathing one more time, I swear I'll melt his stupid shoes to his stupid boat."

           "I won't stop you. Ready?"

           They took off into the jungle to meet the others, minus Bella, who was still settling in and learning the intricacies of the defense plan.

           "What's the story?" Rikki asked Zane after greeting him with a kiss and taking the offered mask. Thankfully, they didn't have to worry about changing clothes, as they'd quickly taken to wearing the comfortable Atlantean garments around the island.

           "Seems like Nate's cooked up a new scheme; almost twenty boats have breached the boundary line and the sharks are having trouble dealing with so many. Nearly every shark in the area is on duty. A few boats have already turned back, but at least two are almost to the beach for us to deal with."

           "Trying to overwhelm us is new. Hopefully he doesn't stick with it, or we might have to come up with a bigger deterrent."

           The others nodded in agreement.

           "So," Lewis said as he adjusted his mask. "Who wants to take the point on this one?"

 

* * *

 

           "Five seconds until cutoff!"

           Will could barely make out his sister's voice through the wind whipping around him, but the gestures that she was making from the deck of the boat below conveyed her meaning well enough. He rolled his shoulders and adjusted his grip on the handle.

           "Three seconds!"

           He steeled himself.

           "Now!"

           The boat stalled and he unhooked the tether, allowing his hang-glider to continued forward across the boundary line. Mako Island's volcano loomed ominously before him, the promise of mystery and danger sending a chill down his spine. He had the sudden impulse to turn back, but forced himself to hold his course. If all went according to plan he would reach the base of the volcano shortly, snap a quick picture, then scale it and use the hang-glider to return to his waiting sister.

           As he passed over the beach, he began to pick up faint screams that drifted to him from the island's other side. Will tried to calm himself by reasoning that he would be circumventing the treacherous jungle, but the thought gave him no comfort.

           A squawk alerted him to the presence of a large bird that had joined him on his left. For a moment it simply glided next to him, then abruptly spun, and, tucking, shot through the thin fabric of the hang-glider, easily puncturing it.

           "Fuck!" Will yelled as he immediately began a fast spiral into the waiting greenery. His efforts to steer were futile, and he crashed through branches and vines to come to a hard stop on the jungle floor. One arm was twisted beneath him at an unnatural angle, and only his fear of the island kept him from crying out. Will dry heaved, then carefully unstrapped himself from the wreckage and maneuvered his partially numb limb to his side. A sharp jolt sent fire through him, and he crammed most of his fist into his mouth, biting down. He tasted blood, but the jungle remained still around him.

           Will stood for a moment, trying to determine his best course of action. He desperately needed medical attention, but he no longer had a safe way off of Mako. Making his way to the beach was an option, but it would involve a much longer trek through the darkness. That left the volcano, which at least would afford him open space and the opportunity to signal Nate or the Coast Guard. He still had his camera, so he could even win the contest, which would at least pay for his medical bills and keep Sophie happy.

           Eager to do anything other than be a sitting duck, Will started off in what he could only hope was the right direction. Each small brush of a leaf or branch sent pain coursing through his arm. He moved slowly, but nevertheless it only took a few minutes before the trees began to thin.

           'I must have landed closer than I thought.'

           He finally emerged from the treeline, but almost immediately his sigh of relief caught in his throat; before him rose a gleaming marble palace surrounded by foliage. He rubbed his eyes, but it didn't disappear. He approached the arched entry, and his uninjured hand made contact with the cool, solid stone. Immediately Will's thoughts raced back to the tales of the savages that supposedly inhabited the island. But a structure such as this was far beyond the ability of such a people, and it was far too well-maintained to be a forgotten ruin. He glanced around, checking that he was still alone, before giving in to his curiosity and entering.

           His footsteps echoed quietly, and his fingers traced the delicate vines encircling the carved columns. Beyond on either side, a splendid garden bloomed. From somewhere within, he could hear the tinkling of water, and a series of irregular splashes drew him from the covered walkway to investigate. A trail led him through the flowering bushes to a large but shallow pool fed by a miniature waterfall. The source of the splashes turned out to be a girl his age, who was reclining in the glimmering water only a few feet from him. Her eyes were closed as she tilted her head back, basking in the sunlight, allowing Will to examine her freely. She certainly didn't look like a savage to him, although she did fit the description of a beautiful woman in strange clothing; her sizeable chest was contained only by what appeared to be a scaly copper bra.

           She shifted, and the movement drew Will's attention to her partially-obscured legs. Or, at least, where her legs should have been, as he could now make out a long, coppery tail. He couldn't help but gasp, and the mermaid whirled.

           "Who are you? What are you doing here?" She shrieked, retreating further into the water.

           Will started forward, hand raised placatingly.

           "Wait, don't go! I won't hurt you!" He waded in a few feet, and she shrank back further. "Please, I promise, I just want to talk. See, no weapons." He gestured to his empty hands, drawing her eyes to his mangled arm.

           "You're injured." She moved up out of the water a little bit to see it better, and Will shifted self-consciously. Another jolt of pain. "What happened?"

           "I tried to get to the volcano through the air, but a bird made me crash my hang-glider and I broke it in the fall."

           "You're here for the competition."

           "Yes. Well, no. I don't really know; my sister, Sophie, really wanted me to enter so I could make a name for us and get the prize money. I have no idea what I'm doing _here_ though, or even where 'here' is."

           The mermaid opened her mouth to answer, then hesitated, and Will knelt in the water in an attempt to put her more at ease.

           "What's your name?"

           "Will Benjamin. What's yours?"

           "Bella. Bella Hartley." Bella was slightly more relaxed.

           "I'm sorry if I scared you, I just didn't expect anyone to be here. And I've never seen a mermaid before. I thought the rumors were just made up, but I guess not. Do the natives really protect you? And how did all of this get built out here?"

           Again, Bella seemed to consider him for a moment.

           "Yes," She finally answered. "They protect me."

           He waited a moment, but she offered nothing further.

           "Well, you don't have to worry about me telling anyone," He assured her; already he felt a desire to protect the beautiful creature, and the thought of someone like Nate Cunningham getting his hands on her was far too disturbing to entertain. "I'm sorry if this whole competition thing has been stressful to you, if I had known there was something serious going on here I never would have joined."

           "Thank you, Will Benjamin. You're far more understanding than most humans." Bella settled herself next to him with a few light strokes of her tail, and he watched, mesmerized. "Does it bother you?"

           The question startled him out of his daze, and he tore his eyes away and up to meet hers.

           "Huh?"

           A faint blush crept across her cheeks and chest and she gestured to her lower half.

           "You were staring; does my tail bother you?"

           "No!" His over-enthusiastic reply came immediately, and he tripped over his own words in his effort to explain himself. "No, no, not at all! It's just that- Well- See, I've been a free-diver for most of my life now, and I've done tons of research into how dolphins and other marine mammals can swim so fast. I've tried to recreate it, but it's never exactly right. The way that you can move, though, so gracefully… it's like something out of my wildest dreams. It's amazing."

           Bella's cheeks reddened further.

           "Thank you… No non-Mer has ever actually seen my tail before."

           "You mean aside from those natives, right?"

           "Oh, uh, yes, of course."

           Something about her tone made him suspicious.

           "How long have you been here? It wasn't that long ago that people were able to visit Mako. And are there more of you?"

           Before he could get a response, there was a crashing in the garden and a woman burst from the bushes facing them, quickly followed by another woman and a man. They were clearly the natives that he'd heard of; each bore tridents, wore masks and odd clothing, and were strikingly attractive.

           "Kusuma, lari e pahaa jao! Adakaa tum awale?" The first woman, with wild brown curls, called, making a sharp gesture with her trident. Bella said something to her in the sam unintelligible language, then switched to English.

           "He's okay; he hasn't hurt me. And look, he's injured!"

           The blonde woman behind her strode forward with a scowl that curled her lips. Will held his breath, waiting for her to come through to shallow water to seize him, but to his relief she stopped just at the edge.

           "He's a human," She snarled. "He can't be trusted."

           "Can't we just send him back to the mainland?" Bella pleaded, but this time the man cut her off, shaking his head.

           "He has seen too much, Kusuma. We cannot keep safe here if the humans know the truth; we aren't ready."

           "I promise, I won't tell anyone," Will's voice shook a little as he eyed their tridents. "I would never let anyone hurt Bella!"

           "The word of a human means nothing to us," The blonde spoke again. "Come out of the water; you will stay in our dungeon until we decide what to do with you."

           Will made no move to leave.

           "That was not a request. Do as we say, or we will not be inclined to be merciful."

           With no other options than to stay in the water and risk their wrath, Will did as he was told.

 


	9. Welcome Home

           "I'm telling you, he made no move to hurt me!" Bella argued. The seven of them stood around the round table of the council room, in the midst of heated debate over the fate of the human currently locked away in the dungeon tower.

           "Yes, but he might have if he wasn't injured," Zane ran a hand through his hair. "And we know he had a camera in his pockets; he clearly intended to use it."

           "But that was before he saw me! He would have had plenty of time to get a picture of me before you came."

           "His intentions aside," Emma said. "We have to figure out what to do with him. We can't let him go back with the knowledge that we're here. Lewis, any updates on that memory potion?"

           "I found one that looks promising, but it takes two weeks to make and won't be effective on his memories of us at that point."

           "There's no way we can keep him here that long," Emma sighed. "I'm sure Nate and the other contestants have already noticed that he's missing."

           "Maybe they'll assume he's dead!" Rikki said brightly.

           "That could just renew their efforts to get here," Zane pointed out. "Plus, then we'd have to either kill him or keep him locked up forever. And I personally don't like the idea of murder."

           "There has to be another way," Bella complained. "He was really interested in me as a mermaid, maybe he could just live with us here normally."

           "We could never trust a human enough for that, unless it was one of our parents."

           "And sometimes not even then." Emma sighed.

           "Wait, what if we didn't have to trust him as a human?" Bella asked. "The full moon is this week…"

           "Then he'd be protecting his own secret too," Ash conceded. "But we couldn't force him to become a merman."

           "What about Charlotte? She was a mermaid and still caused us loads of trouble." Cleo pointed out.

           "But she didn't reveal the secret," Lewis said. "And there would be seven of us and one of him, so it wouldn't be that hard to keep him in line."

           "Are we seriously considering letting a stranger into the moon pool?" Rikki demanded.

           "I thought we were trying to rebuild Atlantis," Bella said. "I don't know how many Mer are left in the world, and it's going to be pretty hard to start a civilization without many of us."

           "We'll put it to a royal vote," Emma decided. "All in favor of giving the human the choice to join us, raise your hand."

           Four hands raised: Emma, Ash, Cleo, and Lewis. Rikki made eye contact with Bella.

           "Do you really trust him to be one of us?"

           "Yes."

           Rikki searched the other mermaid's eyes for a moment, then nodded and raised her hand. Zane followed.

 

* * *

 

           Footsteps echoed on the stairs outside his cell, and Will scrambled up from the cushion he'd been resting on. A native woman appeared outside his door, and his heart sank a little when he didn't recognize Bella behind the mask. Instead, it was an unfamiliar one with straight honey-blonde hair and piercing silver eyes.

           "How is your arm?" She asked, remaining a few feet from the bars.

           Will moved his injured arm a little and winced.

           "A bit better, thanks." Whatever they had treated it with had mostly numbed the pain. It was more than he could have asked for. Everything was, really. Even the cell that he'd been locked in was comfortably furnished, and he was kept well fed. The only problem was the boredom; he had had no choice but to fill the time worrying about his sister and daydreaming about Bella.

           "Good," She nodded. "I've come to inform you of your fate."

           Will was instantly cold. He was pretty sure that his heart had stopped.

           "We cannot allow you to return to the humans with the knowledge that you have. So we've decided to give you a choice: you may remain our prisoner in this tower for the rest of your life, or you may join us."

           "J-Join you? What do you mean? Like a protector?"

           He sensed a slight hesitation.

           "No. Not exactly. We can make you a Mer. A merman, to be specific. You would be subject to our laws, of course, and would live here on the island."

           "A merman? You can actually _make_ me a merman?"

           She nodded.

           "Yes! Yes, absolutely, yes. How? When?"

           "You'll find out in a few days, on the night of the full moon. Until then, you must remain here."

 

* * *

 

           Will waited nervously at the edge of the water, the moon pool, as the others had called it.

           "Any minute now." Lewis informed, comparing the time on his watch to the chart that he'd spread on the sand before giving Will a reassuring smile. The islanders had warmed up to him significantly, even letting him stay in the palace the previous night.

           The moon gleamed overhead, nearly filling the opening at the top of the cavern.

           "Go ahead and get in, Will." Bella encouraged from her position against the wall, tail stretched out in front of her.

           He did as she instructed, treading water with bated breath; they hadn't told him what to expect, wanting to leave it as a surprise and protect the secret to the very end. The water churned, and at first he thought it was simply a result of the movements of his arms. But the water only grew more frothy and began to bubble, and Will glanced up to find the full moon blocking out any view of the sky beyond. The white glow of its reflection on the water shifted to gold, and the bubbles began rising into the air around him. He reached out to touch one, but it evaded him. All too soon the magical effect was over, and he was once again treading regular water. His arm was, amazingly, back to normal, but other than that there was no difference.

           "It didn't work," He sighed, unable to keep the disappointment from coloring his tone.

           To his surprise, this merely drew giggles from the others, even Bella. She did something strange with her hand, and an instant later was shaking gel off of her two very human legs.

           "You- You can turn human?" He swam swiftly to the pool's lip to get a better look, eliciting further laughter.

           "Sorry," Bella gasped, cheeks rosy and eyes tearing up. "It was a bit of a prank, until you were really one of us. You won't be able to transform until morning."

           "You should've seen the look on your face!" Rikki crowed from her spot doubled over next to Zane.

           "Wait, what do you mean 'us'? Are you six mermaids too?" Will was bewildered, and a bit embarrassed.

           "Hey, that's _mermen_ to you." Zane made a vain attempt to appear cross.

           "We are," Emma explained. "Though the cover story of 'natives protecting mermaids' suits our purposes far more than the idea that Mer could be hiding amongst humans. You'll find that you'll grow a tail ten seconds after you get wet, and you'll get your legs back once you dry off. Show him, Bell."

           Bella made an odd motion over her tail, and moments later it was replaced by two gel-covered legs. She shook them off, and Will offered a hand to help her up.

           "How did you do that?"

           "Every Mer has special abilities; we won't know what yours are until the magic fully takes hold, but we can show you ours."

           They ran through a quick demonstration, and Will could hardly contain himself by the time they'd finished.

           "And to think I was excited just to have a tail! This is unbelievable."

           "You better believe it," Lewis said. "You're part of the secret now, too. You'll be living with us and helping protect this place from discovery."

           "Gladly. Though you never really told me what this place is, exactly."

           "This is New Atlantis." Emma announced, and Cleo made a sound between a cough and a gasp.

           "Sorry," She said, face pink. "It's just that we've never said it out loud, and it seems so much more real now."

           The others nodded in agreement.

           "We were chosen to rebuild the lost Mer civilization," Emma continued. "The six of us serve as the Royal Council, and Bella is our advisor. You'll find your own special place here, too, and when we have strengthened and grown we'll reveal ourselves to the world. For now, we must keep the secret."

 

* * *

 

           Will was up early the next morning, eager to test his transformation. He knocked lightly on Bella's door, and she emerged shortly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

           "I should've known you'd get up early. Well, do you want to go try it out?"

           "Do you even have to ask?" He grinned.

           He was surprised when she continued past the lounging pool.

           "Don't you want your first swim as a merman to be in the ocean?" She asked when she noticed.

           At the beach, Will's excitement dimmed and he hesitated.

           'What if it really didn't work?' The thought was enough to make his heart race.

           Bella dove in and surfaced easily. He couldn't just leave her there. He couldn't not _know_. Without giving himself a chance to second-guess it, he dove. His body tingled, and then he couldn't move his legs, because he didn't have any. Instead a long blue tail stretched out behind him. Thinking back to his swims with flippers or monofins, he gave it an experimental flick and shot forward. He gestured excitedly to Bella, and she smiled, coming closer.

           "Isn't it wonderful?" She asked. Her words were oddly fluid, though only a few bubbles escaped her lips.

           "It is!" Will found himself speaking in the odd tongue as well, though he was much more clumsy and let far more air escape. Still, he was pleased to find that there was no burn in his lungs. "How can we understand each other underwater?"

           "All Mer are fluent in Atlantean. It is the only language that can be understood in the water, as only Mer can speak it."

           She showed him around the reefs for a bit, being careful to stay within the boundary. Will was beside himself; the ease of his movements, the beauty of the mermaid with him, and the wonder of the undersea world were all beyond his wildest dreams. He spotted a glint of metal on the seafloor, and swam closer to examine it, extending his hand to grasp it as he did so. Immediately the object, a silver brooch, rose with his motion and came to rest in his hand. He stared, astonished.

           "Will! You found your power!" Bella beamed, swimming closer as he twisted the the bracelet into various, almost liquid shapes. When she reached him, Will gently touched his fingertips to hers and, forehead crinkled with focus, carefully maneuvered the metal to snake slowly across her skin and encircle her wrist in a thin, delicate band. Will looked up to find her blushing down at him. She opened her mouth to speak, then choked as she stared past him. He whirled, bubbles flying.

           The first thing that caught his eye was the coppery tail; Will wasn't sure he'd ever get used to seeing other Mer all the time. The tail was attached to a midnight-hued woman who looked to be around thirty. She hesitated a moment, then flashed them a smile with a tentative half-raise of her hand.

           "I am Nakia," She greeted in heavily accented Atlantean. "Are you from the island?"

 

* * *

 

           "Many women in South Sudan are uneducated, so I was very lucky. Even luckier to find business work; I was an accountant for another woman's laundry service in the city."

           The eight Mer listened with rapt attention as Nakia related her story. She continued to speak in Atlantean as, though it was true that she was not fluent in English and they were not fluent in Dinka, the Mer language felt increasingly familiar and comfortable and they had taken to speaking it as a default.

           "So how did you become a mermaid?" Lewis asked.

           "I fell while hiking, and my leg was too hurt to be able to get out of the jungle before dark. I followed a ravine and found a cave for shelter. There was a small saltwater pool, and while I was cleaning myself off in it the moon shone in and the water changed. In the morning, I discovered my tail."

           "And you came here when you heard the Summoning?"

           "Well," She bit her lip. "That's when I left. It took me a while to get here because there were so many interesting things to see."

           This drew a laugh from her audience; it had been difficult to drag her away from exploring New Atlantis long enough to tell them about herself.

           "We're glad you're here," Emma smiled. "Welcome home."

 

* * *

 

           Zane entered the JuiceNet carefully, hyper-aware of the abundance of water and liquid around him. It was strange; the cafe had once been where he spent the majority of his time, and it still felt familiar, but so much seemed to have changed. For one thing, the whole place seemed devoted to the Mako Island competition. For another, there was a bigger crowd than Zane had seen in a while. Though to be fair, living on a secluded island made any crowd seem enormous in contrast.

           "Zane!" He turned to find Nate waving enthusiastically from the center of the room, and made his way over. The crowd parted easily; the mention of his name sent the teens into a whispered frenzy.

           "Nate, how are you mate?" They hugged.

           "I'm awesome, man! This whole competition is bloody wild - have you heard these rumors about mermaids? Freaky. But what about you? It's like you dropped off the face of the Earth or something."

           "Well, after everything with Dad I got a little place just out of town, been keeping to myself mostly. And Rikki, of course."

           "Oh, so that's still going on, is it?" Miriam had appeared at Nate's side, eyes roaming him unabashedly. The way she was scrutinizing him made Zane worry she'd somehow see past his brown lenses.

           "Hi Miriam. Rikki and I just got engaged, actually. That's why we came; I'm making a few arrangements while she gets her dress fit." Actually, they had also stopped by Will's boathouse to collect some of his belongings, clothing and personal items for the recently arrived mermaid, and some new appliances for the palace, but there was no way he was telling them that.

           "Engaged?" Miriam scoffed. "I never thought you'd be one to be tied down so soon. You used to be such a good time…"

           He rolled his eyes and chose to ignore the insinuation.

           "You didn't invite me?" Nate seemed a little hurt.

           "I wanted to, mate, but we're keeping it very small: just us and her parents." This wasn't quite true, as they would be getting married with their friends and families on Mako. He did regret not having Nate there, but there was just no way around it.

           Another wave of chatter washed over the crowd, and the three turned to find Rikki. She grinned up at him as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in for a quick kiss. The ring on her finger - he'd had her moonstone set into it and surrounded by little diamonds - shone conspicuously. Miriam's eyes were practically glued to it.

           "Rikki, you look great." She ground out reluctantly.

           "Thanks Miriam. Like the ring?"

           Zane had to stifle a laugh at her obvious goading. He knew that the two had always hated each other, and apparently those feelings hadn't softened.

           "Get your errands done, love?"

           "Yep, Cleo's getting it all boxed up now. What's going on in here?" She gestured to the wall full of contestant data.

           "This is all for the competition," Nate started with renewed excitement. "Surely you haven't been so removed from things that you don't know about that. Yes? Good, well, you must have heard about Will Benjamin then."

           "No, who is that?" Rikki feigned confusion.

           "He's the latest to try, but he's missing. Been that way for nearly a week now, the whole town's talking about it, saying they might call in the military. See, someone said they saw him make it to Mako, but since he hasn't come back the theory is those freaks killed him out there."

           "I guess we have been behind on things."

           "Nate!" A redhead burst in in near hysterics and rushed over. Miriam's expression grew, impossibly, more annoyed.

           "What's wrong, Sophie?"

           She thrust a familiar piece of paper at him.

           "Will left this on my counter! He says he had to leave and won't be back."

           "He's alive?"

           "Yes," Sophie was near tears now. "But what did they do to him out there? What if he's horribly disfigured? What do I tell his diving sponsors?"

           "We have to go to the police!" Someone called out, and immediately there was a frenzy of agreement.

           "The police can't do anything about it, I already tried that." Sophie gave a sniffle, reveling in the attention.

           "No, they can't," Nate agreed. Then, to himself, he muttered, "But maybe we need to start looking for help somewhere else."

           Zane and Rikki exchanged a worried look; they'd have to keep an eye on him.

 

* * *

 

           On the far beach of Mako Island, hidden from view, the late afternoon sun watched lazily as the wedding guests settled themselves. There was an overall feeling of breath being held; the boundaries had been checked, Emma had warmed herself up at the grand piano, and Zane and Mr. Sertori stood ready under the flowering arch. The white of the decorations reflected the orange sunlight, creating an illusion of liquid fire. The only thing missing was the bride. With a nod from Zane, Emma started a light melody and a small flock of lovebirds fluttered down the sandy aisle scattering white petals. They were followed by Cleo and Lewis, the Maid of Honor and Best Man, respectively. Once they'd placed themselves, the music shifted to the traditional march and everyone stood. Rikki appeared with her father, and Zane was certain his heart stopped as she floated toward him.

           The candles lining the aisle illuminated her with a soft glow, gleaming off the pearls at her throat. The silky fabric of her plunging gown moved fluidly with her movements. All at once Mr. Chadwick was throwing back her veil and pressing a teary kiss to her cheek, and then she was beside him and Zane found that he could breathe again. The ceremony was a short blur, and the two only had eyes for each other. Zane carefully slid the moonstone ring onto her finger, and Rikki did the same with his.

           "You may now kiss the bride."

           Their friends burst into applause as Zane dipped her low, lips molded together for far too short a time in their own eyes. Zane straightened them, beamed, and lifted Rikki into the air as he spun them.

           "I love you." She whispered when he finally put her down.

           A squawk cut him off before he could respond, and they both groaned; there was only one reason that their wedding would be interrupted.

           "Humans have breached the southern boundary," Niko informed them as he alighted on the back of a chair. "What orders do you give?"

           "Tell Sandar to follow the usual protocol while we prepare ourselves." Ash said.

           Niko bobbed his head and took off.

           "Mother. Fucking. Contest." Rikki buried her face in Zane's shoulder.

           "This needs to end." He agreed.


	10. The Mysterious Mako Island

           Nate could hardly believe it; the Armstrong triplets were in the cafe.  Talking to him. _The Armstrong triplets_ , as in the grandchildren of Neil Armstrong and stars of their own adventure show.  And not only were they in the cafe, they were entering the contest - the contest that he, Nate Cunningham, had created.  Their camera crew followed their movements closely, and he had to fight the urge to reach up and smooth his hair. He refocused on what the girl, Abigail, was saying.

           “Our producer and most of the crew have their own boat, of course, but we’ll go with you so we can get a few nice shots of us with the locals before we win.”

           “Then we’ll accept the half-million prize back here.  Our producer is deciding between a ceremony or concert; should make for good TV.”  One of the brothers, the one with shaggy hair, shrugged.

           “Speaking of good TV, are you sure this is going to be worth our time?”  The clean-cut brother asked, and Nate bristled at the hint of contempt in his tone.

           “You saw the video, so you tell me; are shark attacks, EMPs, crazy natives, a disappeared contestant, and possible mermaids exciting enough for you?”

           “There’s no such thing as mermaids.”

           “I said ‘possible’, not ‘certain’.  And, since you can’t actually film out there, you should play up the mystery angle.  They’re protecting something out there; might as well say it’s mermaids and stick that in your promos.”

           “That’s not a bad idea,”  the producer said from off to the side, gesturing to his assistant who immediately began scribbling the idea in her notebook.  “You should consider a job in the entertainment industry. Now, Armstrongs, let’s get you to your hotel so you can rest up for your big day tomorrow.”

           As the triplets and their entourage filed out, Nate finally let himself slump down into his seat.  The producer’s comment had been an ego boost, to be sure, though he knew he had little choice in taking over his father’s position one day.  What bothered him was that the Armstrongs actually might have a chance of winning, and after failing to reach the island himself he’d taken comfort in the fact that no one else had either.  Even worse, though he refused to acknowledge it, was the feeling of guilt that Nate had about starting this whole contest; Will Benjamin had already disappeared, and here he was sending three more to potentially the same fate.

 

* * *

 

           Abigail’s ponytail whipped violently as she squinted resolutely at the fast-approaching island ahead.  Even in the early afternoon sun, she thought there was something ominous about it.

           “How far until the drop off point?”  She heard Austin ask the local, Nate Something-or-other.  It was nice to hear Austin without his usual arrogance, forced to rely on the slightly younger man.

           “Maybe 2, 3 minutes max.  You guys should start getting your gear together.”

           Each of the siblings was equipped with a flare gun, water, survival kit, and sturdy boots.  The crew came over to help them strap into their packs, then do hair and makeup touch-ups. Then they were photographed around the boat and filmed in short testimonials for the episode.  Abigail rolled her eyes as Andrew preened in front of the cameras; she loved the spotlight as much as he did, but at least she didn’t make a fool of herself.

           “Alright, it’s time!  Kill the engine and lower the launches.”

           She thought she’d be able to relax once she was in the smaller boat but if anything her anxiety had grown.  She tightened her grip on her paddle, rolling her neck and shoulders.

           “You good?”  Austin asked quietly from beside her.

           “Yeah,”  She nodded.  “Just ready to get this over with.”

           “Me too,”  Andrew added from her other side.  “This place is giving me the creeps already.”

           After one more camera check, they set off, eyeing the warning signs bobbing gently in the water.  As soon as they passed, a strong breeze picked up and something bumped their small craft. There were shouts of shock and fear from the ship behind them as suddenly the trio was surrounded by dorsal fins.

           “Andrew, do it now!”  Austin ordered. Andrew snatched up the bundle of bait at his feet and threw it as far to the left of the boat as he could.  About half the sharks detached from the rest to tear into the fish guts. The remaining sharks lingered for a moment, one tugging slightly on Abigail’s paddle, before abandoning them.  Abigail gasped as a shadow the size of a school bus passed under the water beneath her.

           The triplets picked up their speed to leave them, shoulders slumping in relief when they hit sand without further incident.

           “What is that?”  Andrew pointed.

           They moved closer to the jungle entrance to examine the bloody sign flanked by human skulls.  A shiver ran down Abigail’s spine.

           “ _Ke tanaav meluruu, manawa atauu e makee._ ”

           They whirled to find the source of the odd, fluid voice; a stunning, masked brunette adorned with shells and canvas had appeared between them and their ship.

           “Who are you?  Where did you come from?”  Abigail tried.

           The native girl repeated herself, opalescent eyes flashing.

           “We don’t know what you’re saying!”  Andrew called to her.

           The breeze began to grow in strength.  Again, the woman repeated herself.

           “I think she’s warning us.”  Austin said, raising his voice against the gale.

           The woman continued to stand there, indifferent to the wind, as what appeared to be a tornado formed behind her, picking up sand.  It skirted around her, moving steadily toward them.

           “Come on!”  Austin yelled.  He grabbed Abigail by the wrist and pulled her toward the jungle trail.  Andrew followed shortly after, shirt pulled up to protect his nose and mouth from the storm.

           They ran blindly, not stopping until the beach was out of sight and the only sound was that of the jungle.

 

* * *

 

           “Okay, what the fuck was that?”  Andrew gasped, trying to catch his breath.

           “I don’t know, but it was freaky.  She has to be one of the natives everyone’s been talking about.”  A movement in the corner of her eye caught Abigail’s attention, and she focused on the foliage around them.“What the…?”

           In the bushes around them, vivid flowers were blooming out of nowhere.  In a matter of seconds they went from tiny buds to the size of dinner plates, in every color of the rainbow, bringing with them an enticing aroma.

           “Something is seriously wrong with this place.”  Austin said, moving closer to examine one. He swayed a little, inhaling deeply.

           Abigail made a move to follow suit, entranced by the smell, but her foot was caught on something.  With great effort, she looked blearily down to find a vine had snaked its way around her ankle. It took a second to realize what was going on with her head feeling oddly cloudy, but when the vine suddenly tightened Abigail jolted out of her stupor.

           “Get away!”

           Andrew and Austin, misinterpreting her, jumped back from the bushes to find themselves covered in vines as well.  Abigail grabbed the small knife in her pocket and slashed at the creeper but it only made it tighten and another slithered out to attack her other leg.  The flowers’ scent was suddenly overpowering, and the three had no choice but to hold their breaths to keep from falling asleep. They hacked desperately at the vines, but when one was severed two more appeared in its place.

           Abigail’s lungs were burning and her vision was spotty.  To her left, Andrew was the first to drop. He was immediately covered in plants.  Austin was on his knees, slowly being pulled further down. Then he was down. Abigail thrashed, but, with the focus now completely on her, she was down in an instant.

           Then, in the next instant the triplets were sprawled on the dirt jungle floor, no flowers or vines in sight.

           “What.  The. Fuck.”  Andrew said as slowly sat up.

           “ _Ke tanaav meluruu, manawa atauu e makee._ ”  The chillingly familiar phrase answered before Austin or Abigail could.

           Blocking the path in front of them was another native, a man holding a trident.  He surveyed them impassively with gold eyes, before speaking again.

           “You have trespassed, but the island has found you pleasing,”  His perfect English was shocking, and somehow more unsettling. “You will be rewarded with the riches of the earth.  Follow.”

           When they made no move to comply, the man shifted his grip on his weapon and, taking the hint, the three of them rose.  He stepped off the path and set off on a barely-visible trail wordlessly. They had to nearly run to keep up with him. At first there was no change in their surroundings, but then Andrew nudged his siblings and gestured at the path; strewn haphazardly along it were small pebbles of gold.

           “Do you think he was telling the truth about the whole ‘riches of the earth’ thing?”  Andrew asked.

           Austin gave a stiff shrug.

           “Maybe they just want to bribe us to leave the island.”

           “But then why would that woman have blocked us from going back to the boat?”  Abigail replied. “Something doesn’t feel right about this.”

           Austin nodded in agreement, but Andrew was busy scanning the ground for gold, now abundant on the trail.

           “We don’t really have much other choice, so why not play along?  He’s got that sick-looking trident.”

           They were winded by the time the man halted, and Abigail narrowly avoided running into him.  He stepped back into the dense foliage and, after a short bow of his head, disappeared completely.

           “How did he-”  But Austin was cut off by Abigail’s choked exclamation.

           The trail did not continue in front of them; instead, it opened into a small clearing heaped with gold coins, silver trinkets, and glittering gemstones.  In the center stood three life-sized golden statues.

           “It’s us.”  Andrew breathed, stepping closer.  Abigail saw that he was right, the statues were indeed exact replicas of the three Armstrong siblings.

           “This is too freaky,”  She said, stepping back even as Andrew reached out to touch the arm of his golden duplicate.  “Andrew, don’t-”

           But it was too late.  The golden figure seemed suddenly less substantial, almost like it was melting in slow motion.  Andrew tried to remove his hand, but it was stuck fast. Gold began to creep up his fingers. Abigail made move to rush to him, but Austin held her back.

           “We have to help him!”  She cried, but Austin just held her grimly.

           The gold quickly engulfed Andrew’s whole arm, holding it stiff and immobile.  As it transferred onto him, the statue shrank in equal measure. Andrew struggled desperately, screaming for his siblings to help, but he received none.  Finally, awfully, he was choked off and once again there were three statues in the clearing.  

           “Let go of me.”  Abigail sobbed. This time, Austin complied, and she was free to step into the clearing.  Fire roared to life among the piles of precious metals and gems, and Abigail stumbled back with a shriek.  The fire was extinguished. She did not try again; her brother belonged to the island now, that much was clear.

           “We can come back for him later,”  Austin said. “Once we finish what we came for.”

           “How can you still be thinking about that stupid contest?  Our brother is _dead_ !  He turned into a _statue_ !  The gold caught on _fire_!  It’s like magic, and not the good kind.”

           “Do you have a better idea?  We can’t exactly go back to the boat through those plants and that tornado again.  Do you want to stay here and risk that happening to us? Besides, I have this...feeling, I guess, that the natives know about the contest.  We might get some sort of immunity if we win.”

           She couldn’t think of any logical argument against that, and reluctantly followed him back the way they’d came.

 

* * *

 

           Walking on the main jungle path again unfortunately offered no relief.  Each animal screech or rustle in the undergrowth made the pair jump, knives at the ready.  But there was nothing, and they traveled easily until they reached a shallow river. With no other options, they waded carefully through.

           All at once Abigail found herself plucked from the water and held, floating, meters above it with Austin beside her.  Standing on the shore, hand raised, was another native man.

           “What the fuck did you do to my brother, you freak?  Put us down!” She hurled her knife at him, but he avoided it at the last moment with blinding speed.

           “You trespass on our sacred ground and now you attack our people.  You have been judged, and the moon goddess requires a sacrifice.”

           Austin made a strange gurgling sound and clawed at his throat and mouth.  Something solid protruded from his mouth, and it took Abigail a moment to realize that the hard, shiny mass was his _tongue_.  It had somehow turned to glass.

           “Austin!”  Abigail struggled violently in the air, trying to reach her brother.  Her eyes were watering, and she tried to blink the tears away but something was wrong; they felt almost sticky.  She blinked again, or, at least, tried to, as she couldn’t open her eyes at all. They were sealed shut. Abigail screamed.

 

* * *

 

           They were deposited gently on the dirt on the other side of the river.  Or that’s where Abigail thought they were; she could feel the ground beneath her and hear the water behind her, but her sight was gone.

           “Austin?  Are you there?”

           She felt his hand take hers and he made a muffled sound, but as she’d lost her sight, it seemed he had lost his voice.

           “Can you lead me?  Squeeze once for yes, two for no.”

           One squeeze.

           “Alright.  Let’s do this.”  After her initial panic, she felt oddly calm.  They’d seen so many weird things already, and she’d already lost her brother; freaking out had done no good in any of those situations.

           Austin tugged her forward, and she followed, feeling the temperature drop slightly as the sounds of the jungle enveloped them once more.  There was almost a musical nature to it, and Abigail felt herself relaxing into it. Austin must have too, because he stilled and dropped her hand.

 

* * *

 

           Austin did his best to ignore the glass settled thickly in his mouth as he surveyed the trees and bushes on either side.  This adventure had been an extremely odd one, but he was a skeptic by nature and assumed that they’d been drugged and had imagined the strange events.  It wasn’t a pleasant thought, but it was better than the alternative.

           Faint singing caught his ear as they walked, and he stopped to listen, mesmerized; he had never heard something so beautiful in his life.  The words were indistinguishable, but something about it made him think of the ocean. The source seemed to be a small pathway through the jungle on their left, and Abigail had already begun to drift toward it.  Austin, suddenly desperate not let her have the music for herself, followed swiftly.

           The path turned out to be only a meter or two long, and they emerged into a tiny clearing dominated by a pool of opaque, glassy water.  The singing was powerful, and came from a gorgeous dark-skinned woman who sat half-submerged. She ran her fingers through her close-cropped hair before extending them invitingly.  The music swelled.

           Austin and Abigail both stepped languidly to the edge of the water, but Austin stumbled and his concentration was broken.  Now, as he gazed at the woman, he thought he saw something predatory about her stance. He tried to reach out for and call out to his sister, but succeeded in only a strangled sound that did nothing to distract her and she went blindly into the woman’s arms.

           The singing cut off and the pair disappeared instantly into the mist.  Austin backed away, but something solid connected with the back of his head and the world went black.

 

* * *

 

           Austin had a skull-splitting headache.  He opened his eyes, squinting in the dim light, to find himself upright in yet another pool of water, at the base of the volcano this time.  He was lashed loosely to a wooden pole behind him and, after ensuring that there were no natives around, he quickly untied the vines binding him.  His escape was hindered, however, by the solid nature of the water. It was similar to the hard glass in his mouth, and his feet were stuck fast.

           Booming thunder startled him as the sky, previously pink-hued by the oncoming sunset, turned stormy.  Lightning crackled. Surrounding his pool, a dozen formerly-unnoticed torches sprang to life, illuminating a white stone mermaid statue at the volcano’s base before him.  Natives, including the ones from the beach and the two clearings, crept in. They whispered to him and each other in their strange language, and chills swept across him.

           There must have been some sort of signal, because the natives all quieted and sank to a kneeling position, looking expectantly at the statue.

           “Human,”  greeted a cool voice.  In the place of the statue was a real mermaid, with flowing hair and silver eyes and tail.  She reclined against a large rock, observing him without passion. “You have trespassed on my sacred earth and waters, have survived, sacrificed, and now stand at my mercy.  How do you plead?”

           She waved a hand, and suddenly Austin had a normal tongue.  He felt like fainting.

           “Y- You’re real.  Mermaids are real.”

           The mermaid’s eyes narrowed.

           “You were asked a question, yet provide no answer.  Does this mean that you accept the charges?”

           “Wha- No!  I was just trying to win a contest, I didn’t know you were here!”

           “A contest?  This must have been of the utmost importance for you to ignore the warnings.  Tell me, human, what was your prize? Do you compete for a medicinal herb, perhaps to heal a loved one?  Or do you come in search of knowledge, with which you may protect your people?”

           “Er, actually the goal is just to get a picture in front of the volcano.  There’s a big money prize.” He had a feeling this wouldn’t go over well, but he was too nervous and shaken to make up a good enough lie.

           “I see.  And this…’money prize’, you need it for some greater purpose?  To donate, perhaps?”

           “Well, I guess I could donate it.  My siblings and I mostly just entered for the glory, though.”

           That was _definitely_ the wrong answer.  The mermaid’s face twisted in fury, and there was a flash of lightning.

           “You disturbed this place, disrespected the beings that live and grow here, to stoke your ego?”

           “I’m sorry!  I didn’t know, please, I promise I’ll tell everyone to stay away from here if you let me go!  I’ll never disrespect nature again! I swear it.”

           “The word of a human is worth nothing to me,”  She looked at him with disgust. “Since you have survived thus far, however, and have sacrificed your own blood, you will receive one final chance to keep your life.”

           “Anything.  I’ll do anything.”

           “Merely answer my riddle: What swims with the fish of the sea, and runs with the beasts of the earth?  What protects the sea from the earth? You have three tries.”

           “Uhhh, a frog.”  His hands shook and he blurted out the first answer that came to mind.

           “Wrong,”  She waved her hand, and his lower body froze solid.  “Think hard, as your life is in your hands.”

           “Sand?”

           She froze him up to his neck.  Tears welled up in Austin’s eyes as he searched his brain desperately.  He had been warned about the mermaids on Mako Island, but he hadn’t listened and now was going to die for it.

           ‘How could we have known that we were trespassing on sacred water and land or whatever it was that she said.  Wait, water and land? Could it be…?”

           “Mermaids?”  His voice trembled.

           The mermaid stared unblinkingly for a moment before giving him a warm smile.

           “You are correct, human.  My congratulations, and farewell.”  She waved.

           “What?  But you said I’d live!  Someone, please, help! HELP!  HELLLLLP MMM-”


End file.
